A Graceful Serpent
by Cydonia921
Summary: When Kairi, a fifteen-year-old girl, encounters a Milotic, she becomes the beautiful water-type's servant in retaliation to other trainers. Stripped of her memories, Kairi learns to be a loyal servant to the Milotic, just as the Milotic perceived Pokemon under trainers to be. Would Kairi prove Milotic wrong, or will Milotic stand firm to her own beliefs?
1. Prologue

No one would have truly expected the trainer to become the captured. In this subtropical region, uncharted from other parts of the world, it would seem that this would be the case.

"This really can't be the right direction," a young teenage girl muttered to herself, her bare feet pressing against the pebbles underneath her, the water running past her weary feet as she treaded on. Her chocolate-brown eyes shut for a moment as she let off a small yawn, her snow-white hair bouncing with each step, despite only being extended as far as to the back of her neck. These features were complemented by her tanned skin, which had a very nice feminine figure to it all. Her body was covered with a white T-shirt, a tan pair of shorts that extended down to her knees, held up by a black belt that had two pokeballs on the side. She looked up again, thinking to herself, 'This is obviously the right direction, Kairi….' She looked up, and saw a cavern entrance, pausing in her tracks momentarily. She admired the structure as a whole, seeing beads of water drip from within the cavern, the inside dimly lit. Kairi hesitated for a few moments, before making the fateful decision to enter the cavern. She took in a breath to calm herself, and slowly she entered.

As Kairi walked into the cavern entrance, a pair of eyes within the darker portion of the cavern appeared, glaring at her intrusion. 'What is this…human doing here?', it thought to itself in anger, seething with hatred as it cautiously observed the human's actions.

Kairi glanced around the cavern, seeing that the cavern was glistening with water. She wondered what could possibly be living within the cavern, wanting to believe that it was that Pokemon, of all things. But before she could ponder any longer, she paused once more, blinking as she suddenly felt the temperature drop in the cavern, as if something had changed the temperature in an instant. She glanced outside the cavern, even seeing some icicles form on the leaves of the plants outside. 'W-What's going on?!', she thought to herself in confusion, trying to find a reason for what was occurring.

Along with the sudden drop in temperature, a mysterious mist seemed to fall in the area, making everything past two meters obscure. Kairi raised a hand, seeing the incredibly vague outline of her hand within the fog, instinctively she felt worried about the strange occurrence. "H-Hello?", she stammered out, rubbing her arms together as she tried to keep herself warm. She stepped slowly through the cavern, her feet making small splashes in a pool of water, until she stopped, the water reaching up to her shins.

It was at that moment that a figure emerged from the deeper portion of the water, breaking the still surface with such force that the resulting wave sent Kairi falling back into the chilling waters underneath her. Kairi shivered violently, her eyes full of fear as she looked about, immediately terrified by now. "W-Who's there?! S-Show yourself!", she cried out, her voice cracking a bit in the middle out of fear.

A portion of the fog lifted, revealing the hidden figure that had made the wave. Standing tall was a creature with light-colored scales, with some that shimmered with many different colors. A pair of black eyes met as the creature soon revealed itself, its serpentine body clear to Kairi's eyes now. This pokemon was no other than a female Milotic, a very rare pokemon that only few trainers have seen before. Although the creature appeared to be gentle at first glance, its glare on the intruding trainer grew more narrow, clearly showing her displeasure towards her arrival. Through telepathy, she talked to Kairi in her mind, but it sound so commanding, so angry. "Why did you come here, human? Your kind is not welcomed here…."

Kairi nearly choked, the sight of the Milotic astonishing her senses. The scales were a sight for sore eyes, the many colors pleasing to the visual palette to her weary eyes from the day of searching for the creature. After a few moments of sheer astonishment, sense kicked into her system and Kairi glanced up at the Milotic, her entire body shivering out of concern towards the Milotic's glare. She answered truthfully to the Milotic's question, her voice wavering momentarily, "I-I got lost." And indeed, she was lost.

The Milotic pondered upon it for a moment, and decided that it was a likely excuse. She was prepared to give the human teenager a warning to leave the place, but her eyes had caught sight of something on Kairi's belt that was all too familiar to the serpent. Contraptions with red and white patterns where attached to the belt, and the Milotic's impatience and anger grew. She had seen these before, and had jumped to the conclusion that this human had intended to steal Pokemon from her territory. "Do you believe I am unable to tell? I can see them around the strap you wear!" Of course, an angered look appeared on the serpent's face. "You intend to capture Pokemon!"

Kairi paused, feeling herself start to become pressured by the Milotic. It was clear that the water-type was furious towards Kairi's intrusion, and add to the fact that it didn't seemed pleased that she was a trainer, and you have an idea of what Kairi's plight was. She glanced away from the Milotic, before making a weak chuckle, trying her best to lighten up the tense atmosphere between them. She couldn't quite deny it, since it was clear that the Milotic would tell if she was lying or not. The human girl rubbed the back of her snow-white hair, her heart beating out of sheer stress. "…I…..Guess….?", was all she managed to make out. And what she would find out seconds later, it would be the thing that ignites the serpent's anger.

The once gentle aura that covered the area vanished quickly due to the Milotic's fury. This only made Kairi all the more worried, and then a loud voice rang loudly through Kairi's mind, making Kairi grasp her head as a headache developed swiftly. "YOU DARE?!", the voice said to Kairi in a furious tone. Her rainbow-colored tail wrapped tightly around Kairi's body, almost ready to choke the human to death for her insolence.

Kairi was disoriented from the sudden voice that rang through her mind, and the next thing she knew she was being squeezed tightly by the Milotic's tail. Was this really how she was going to die? In a cavern, crushed to death by the very creature she sought out? She winced, unable to speak to the serpent to reason due to the tight vice the coils had on her. "P-Please…..D-Don't…..", was all she managed to choke out, before coughing as her organs seemed to feel like they were being squeezed and crushed at the same time.

The Milotic lightened up her grip after seeing the human beg to the best of her extent. Even if the Milotic was angry at humans for their insolence, the idea of crushing one in her coils was too gruesome to think of. Yet, it wouldn't let the human leave this place and expect other humans to not come here. Instead, the Milotic had another idea pop into her mind. It was clever to say the least, but there was one particular flaw with it. She doubted the idea at first, but it was better than trusting the human to not come back.

Kairi held her breath for a moment, noticing that the Milotic lightened up her grip. Of course, she still had a headache from the sudden booming voice from earlier, but at least she didn't have to fear being crushed….For now. A sigh of relief escaped her lips, one thing off of her mind. And yet, another seemed to come along as quickly as ever. What would happen next? Was the Milotic going to freeze her as a warning to other trainers? Or, was the Milotic going to devour her? It was hard to tell what would happen next. "W-What are you going to do to me?", she asked the serpent in a worried voice, feeling her heart beat faster out of fear.

The Milotic thought about it for a few moments longer, and finally she made up her mind on how to deal with the human. Slowly, she raised the trainer to meet with her eyes, which seemed much calmer than a minute ago. But, the voice inside Kairi's head still sounded as commanding and angry as ever. "If you would steal Pokemon from this place and take their freedom, then YOUR freedom shall be forfeit!" The coils around Kairi tightened briefly as Milotic's eyes widened ever so slightly, a small glow emanating from them.

The Serpent unleashed an attack on Kairi's mind that would surely cause a great deal of mental anguish for the young trainer. Milotic's eyes seemed to pierce into Kairi's very being, the glow around the eyes entrancing the trainer enough so she had no physical will to turn away. She was focused on sealing away everything Kairi knew, giving the human a clear mind to become the Pokemon's newest servnt.

Kairi felt nothing but terror flooding over her body, the Milotic's actions scaring her immensely. She had always been taught that Milotic were gentle creatures, willing to help humans in need of plight. This clearly wasn't like the examples she saw. Instead, her feeble human mind was quickly succumbing to the Milotic, her body still shifting inside the coils. But no matter how hard Kairi tried, she couldn't look away from the beautiful serpent.

The Milotic's attack on Kairi was sure to be painful, worse than the greatest of migraines she may have experienced. She knew that most of her kind were pacifying and gentle, she was utterly upset what she saw trainers come around to the area, only to kidnap parents and children in their strange devices. "I will make you a slave, like those you have stolen from nature, and you will never harm any of us again!", she shouted inside Kairi's mind, the excruciating moment within mere milliseconds away. Soon, Kairi would be writhing in pain as her mind started to seal away her memories of her life.

Kairi shivered for a moment, expecting the worst to come from the Milotic's words. And indeed it came. There was a sharp pain throughout her entire mind, as if a knife was slowly cutting through it, and Kairi started to writhe in excruciating pain, blood-curdling screams heard from her as she pleaded for the serpent to spare her. After a few moments, the pain started to become unbearable, and Kairi shut her eyes. Truthfully, she felt like she was dying. But, instead, piece by piece, her memories started to disappear before her eyes.

Even though Milotic was neither as gentle, nor as peaceful like others of her kind, seeing the trainer writhing in pain still plucked heartstrings on her icy heart. It was pitiful to say the least, that humans seemed to be a bit too fragile when it came to their minds. She tried to tune out the screams Kairi made in order to finish with the trainer's initiation into servitude. Minutes passed, and the Milotic made a glance at Kairi. Her face looked pale, despite having a tanned complexion, probably because of the pain she had gone through for several minutes now. The Milotic shut her eyes, and loosened her coils, feeling that Kairi had enough of this torture. Kairi slipped out of the coils and landed in the icy waters below. The fog that had come to the area finally dissipated now that the Milotic had calmed down.

Kairi muttered something unintelligible as she moved a bit more in the water. She shook her head as the tears from earlier were washed away by the frigid waters, the same waters sending chills down Kairi's spine. With her memories completely erased, save for her name, she would be nothing more than a burden to the world. With them gone, she could begin her new life, as a servant to the beautiful, wicked Milotic. A few minutes passed with Kairi shifting in the waters, until she fell limp. It would have been easy to declare that Kairi was dead from shock, but the Milotic knew that Kairi was nowhere near death….

Several hours had passed, and the noon sun had started to approach the horizon, signaling that it was somewhere around five, or even six. The Milotic had lifted Kairi onto her scales, and she kept a thoughtful eye on the human. She wondered, over the last few hours, what she could possibly do with a human as her servant. She had thought about teaching the human about the pain she believed other pokemon had felt in their round prisons. But, despite despising humans for their actions, she knew that even torture like that was inexcusable. She would never be caught doing such a thing in her lifetime.

It contemplated what the best course of action was, and thought of treating this human with a little compassion while still enslaving her. After all, it was the most humane way in her eyes. The Milotic realized only time would tell, and a more gentle voice rang in Kairi's mind. It was loud enough to cause Kairi to wake up, but it wasn't as loud and commanding as before. "Human…..Open your eyes….."

Kairi stirred from her dreamless sleep, shifting her head from side to side. Her chocolate-brown eyes slowly opened, enough to where they adjusted to the light that streamed through the entrance. She raised a hand, and rubbed her forehead. "Gah, such a migraine….", she said to herself, before sitting upright on the Milotic's scales. Once her feet touched the chilling waters was only when Kairi wondered where she was. The human blinked, looking down. A stream? She glanced at what she was sitting on, and her eyes widened with fear. With her memories sealed away, she of course had no idea where she was, or how she got there. Instead, she made a yelp and fell backwards, bumping her head against the rocks. "W-What the?!", she exclaimed, sitting upright again and looking up at the Milotic, who stared at Kairi with interest. Kairi made a small shriek of terror, and swiftly she moved back until her back touched the damp wall. "W-Who are you?!", she exclaimed, terrified out of her wits as she glanced around, gulping a bit as she didn't recognize the surroundings. "W-Where am I?!", she cried out, tears starting to form in her eyes.

The Milotic had nearly forgotten that she had sealed away the trainer's memories, including those of her knowledge and career as a trainer. To help Kairi come to grips with her fear of seeing the beautiful serpent in front of her, Milotic used an aura around the cavern to help pacify the human from fearing her. And sure enough, the aura was enough to send Kairi's terrified face fleeing, and instead came a much calmer, but still scared, look on her face. She spoke to Kairi again. "You need not be afraid, human. I am your mistress, and you are my loyal servant." It was blunt to say the least, but she needed an easy answer to Kairi's questions.

Kairi blinked, her fears dissipating and replaced with curiosity. Was this the truth? It was hard to tell. Slowly, her breathing returned to normal and her heart became a bit more at ease, and she rose to her feet, still pressed against the wall. "So, you are my mistress….?", she inquired, cocking her head to the side for a brief moment, her white strands of hair reluctant to flow because of the humidity in the cavern. "And….I am…your servant?"


	2. Chapter I

The Milotic gave a nod to her newest servant, knowing that, with her mind a blank slate, she would believe anything she would have to say. "Yes, do you grasp it soundly?", she asked the human girl in a gentler voice from earlier, a light smile forming on her face. It was so easy, almost too easy to deceive this human.

That is, until there was a small bump in the progress.

Kairi looked down at herself, wondering where she got the clothing from, and then she blinked, noticing something rather odd. She brushed her hand against a red and white capsule, wondering what exactly it was. Her chocolate-brown eyes had a look of awe, wondering just what they were. "Well then….May I ask what these are?", Kairi asked, pointing to the belt that had several Pokeballs hooked onto them.

The Milotic grew silent immediately, a worried look appearing on her face almost immediately after that question. She did not take the time to plan everything for Kairi's initiation as a servant, and regretted not having removed the capsules from Kairi's sight. The water-type wanted to remove the belt from Kairi's waist, not wanting the creature inside to protect her from anymore harm. "You seem to have collected many useless items from your explorations today." The Milotic took her fins and slipped the belt off of Kairi's waist, placing it to the side to deal with later.

"Did you also find those while exploring?", was the next thing Milotic inquired, pointing to Kairi's clothing, which was another oversight she had made. She feared that, somewhere in the clothing, there may be something that could inform the human about who she was. It would be something that made things much more complicated, and the Milotic couldn't risk it. She needed to coax Kairi out of them as soon as possible.

Kairi's face had a look that was mixed between confusion and fear. The Milotic talked about explorations and the such, but Kairi tried to think about how she came with these odd things. "E-Exploring?", she said in an odd manner, trying her best to remember anything of the sort. But, much to her terror, nothing seemed to come up. It was something that was downright horrifying to the trainer, as proven by her hands grasping her white hair, falling onto her knees as she let off a scared sound. "W-Why can't I remember exploring?!", she said, before shaking her head. No, it was much worse than that. She trembled as she had a feeling of illness well up in her stomach. Her voice grew a bit louder, to where it would echo across the cavern walls. "W-Why can't I remember….A-Anything?!", she cried out, on the verge of tears during her moment of terror.

One of the fins on the end of Milotic's tail gently brushed up against the girl's chin, hoping she would look up at her and calm down a bit. She definitely didn't want Kairi to strain herself, even if her reaction was perfectly normal for someone in her situation.. "There is no reason to be afraid, human. Your mind has taken on much stress, from what I saw when I found you laying on the ground." Milotic's gentle-looking eyes moved closer to Kairi, hoping to give the human girl comfort. Then, a small lick was felt on Kairi's cheek very lightly, in another attempt to keep Kairi calm. "It will all come back to you, in due time. I will help you to understand everything you have forgotten, for I am your caring mistress."

Kairi, of course, looked up at the Milotic, her panicked expression melting into one with an odd calmness behind it. The words the Milotic said to her seemed truthful, to say the least, not to mention it was quite believable. She felt the tears recede a bit, maybe just to where the eyes were a bit watery. "I…I guess….", she managed to mutter out, her mind believing the beautiful serpent's words.

Milotic drew her head closer to Kairi's, and gently rubbed up against the side of the human's face. This was, of course, another attempt to calm Kairi's confusion while she thought of ways to completely remove any possibility of the human regaining her old memories. Then, a very straight-forward way came to mind, and it'd surely let the human be more comfortable in the hotter days of the year. "Why don't you take off these strange things you don on yourself. You are safe here." And indeed, Kairi was safe, especially since it was the Milotic who was taking care of her. If it was any other Pokemon, it would be problematic, due to the space Kairi would need to sleep. But, in this cavern, there was enough space for herself, and her human servant; not to mention that, here, she's under the Milotic's protection.

Kairi blinked, then looked down at her clothing. They didn't seem to be causing any problems at all, but if her mistress said she could, then perhaps it was safe after all. It seemed odd at first, but after reasoning in her mind she slipped her hands underneath the T-shirt, pulling up and over her head before letting it slowly glide into the water beside her. Kairi's sandals were already off to the side, which left her tan pair of shorts to be discarded. The human teenager didn't find this odd, mainly because she trusted the Milotic, despite only knowing so little about her. She took the edge of the shorts, and slowly slipped it down her slender legs, glancing up at her Mistress as she lifted her feet from her shorts, a timid smile spreading across her face. Like her Mistress's words, she did feel safe after all. She felt the cool air surround her bare skin, and Kairi, of course, shivered from it. The human girl glanced down, noticing two garments that seemed rather odd; they covered the chest and hips area. She wondered what purpose they served, and she looked up at the mistress, rubbing her hand against these odd garments. They seemed out of place, in Kairi's eyes at least. "Mistress, may I remove these as well?", she inquired, with innocent intentions of course.

Milotic shook her head after she looked carefully at the undergarments the human wore, seeing nothing that could help in recollecting memories of her shattered past. With a smooth motion of her tail, the MIlotic swept the rest of the clothing off the surface of the water, and placed aside on a cool, dry area of stone. A small smile formed on her face, showing her serene side. "You need not, human….Unless, it makes you feel uneasy, of course."

Kairi gave the Milotic a light nod of the head, rubbing her hand against her bare skin, feeling the goose bumps underneath her fingertips one moment, and then the fabric of her undergarments the next. A look of annoyance was seen on her face from the mere touch of the cloth, and she repeated her strokes several times. She even shifted her legs a bit, finding these cloths a bit on the useless side. The teenage girl looked at the Milotic, saying to her mistress, "I just….I don't see any point in these…Irritating if anything…." Kairi, after a few moments of frustration, managed to take her top off, letting the cloth fall to the water with a subtle splash. This was followed with slipping off her bottom, joining the top on the waters. Kairi gave off a content sigh, watching her mistress brush the undergarments aside, to the same spot where the other clothes laid, wet and discarded. "So much better….", Kairi managed to make out, shutting her eyes as she stepped forward. The air was cold, and contained moisture unlike any other, but, somehow, Kairi was quite calm despite the circumstances.

The Milotic moved towards Kairi, wrapping her tail around Kairi's waist. She was surprised that the human discarded everything that connected her to her past life, but at the same time it meant there would be little problem indicting her into her new life. She wondered what it meant to make the human a servant, perfect in her eyes. Her tail fins scratched Kairi's back lightly, a slight smile seen on the serpent's face. "Young servant, do you remember your name, by chance?" It was natural that a human would have a name, all of them seemed to have one. But, if this one couldn't remember her own name, that meant her hypnosis was far too powerful on the human's mind.

Kairi made a smile, feeling the scratching relax her immensely. As the Milotic asked the question, Kairi opened her eyes, looking at the Milotic blankly for a moment. Her name….? What was that? But, before Kairi could ponder upon it any longer, a word seemed to come out of her mouth. "Kairi….It's Kairi…", she said to the Milotic, before lowering her head lightly, before raising it back up again.

The Milotic was surprised that, after everything she did to Kairi's mind, that the human could still remember her name clearly, and without pause. Although, she knew that forgetting a name was virtually impossible for a mind to do, especially for a human. She moved her head closer to Kairi, looking into the human's brown eyes with her own large pair. "Very well, Kairi, are you prepared to carry out my will?", she inquired towards the human, knowing that, with no one else to turn to, Kairi would have no other option than to obey to her commands and every whim.

Kairi paused momentarily, a blank look, once again, spreading across her face. She thought about the situation for a moment. She was awoken by this serpent, and not to mention that the serpent seemed rather trustworthy. After all, from all that the Milotic told her, it seemed true, especially considering that she had no memories of her past life. After a few seconds of silence between the two, Kairi looked at the Milotic, a content smile spreading across her face as she gave off a small nod of the head. "Of course, my mistress…..Your will is my command," she said to the serpent, shutting her eyes and making a giggle. She liked the thought of being this serpent's servant, despite how odd the situation seemed. At least it was something as beautiful as this Milotic, and not something that was hideous.

Milotic nodded back to the young human, and let her tail unwind from the human's nude body as it dipped into the shallow, cool water. She looked back at Kairi with a sincere smile, pleased that Kairi was quite well-behaved, for a human, that is. "Climb on, and don't fall. We will need to collect food for your first task, human," she said to Kairi in a stern, yet gentle, voice, wondering how well the human will obey orders from here on out.

Kairi made yet another nod towards the Milotic, saying in a quiet voice, "Alright…." She took several steps through the cool water, her heart beating in her chest as she sat upon her mistress's scales, noticing how soft and smooth to the touch they were. She took a few seconds to enjoy the mere feel of the scales with the palm of her hand, before wrapped her arms around the Milotic's serpentine neck, the red fins brushing past her forearms lightly. She had a very faint blush on her face, a bit envious that she didn't have a body as majestic as the Milotic's. "Your body's quite wonderful, mistress…", was all she managed to make out, words failing to describe how great the Milotic's scales had felt.

Milotic looked back at the human as she enjoyed the softness of her scales, a smile on her face as she saw the blush upon Kairi's cheeks from the touch. As Kairi had wrapped her arms around the Milotic and complimented her body, she couldn't refuse such a comment, even if it did come from a human. The Milotic thought she took a lot of pride in her own scales, so it was rather nice to hear such a thing coming from Kairi. "You have a good judgment of scales, Kairi. You've flattered your mistress well." The serpent slowly slithered towards the entrance of the cavern, which had sunlight streaming through at an angle, signaling that it was sometime in the evening. They had at least an hour or two before night would fall, and she didn't want her new servant to be wandering about during the night time. As they came out into the open, the Milotic wondered if humans, such as Kairi, ate any of the berries that grew in the wild. "I will show you berries that you must pick every day, and teach you about each one," she said to Kairi, floating a few inches off of the surface of the stream. In the trees on either side of the stream, colorful fruits were seen, as large as apples and with plenty of colors and designs. These were berries.

Kairi was pleased to hear the compliment from her mistress as they moved out of the cavern and into the open of the forest. She shut her eyes for a moment as the sunlight blinded her momentarily, before opening them as they adjusted to the evening sunlight. As Kairi looked around, she was quite surprised to see that the forest was so lush, so green. The cool air was much warmer than the cavern she woke up in, but she enjoyed it nonetheless. The human girl looked, and noticed colorful fruits that hung on the trees. There were many colors, ranging from the deep blue to the scarlet red, and this only fascinated her. She had never seen anything like this before, and she noticed her mistress moving towards one of the trees that was closer to the stream, yet it was at least twenty feet away from the cool, rushing water. "I'm guessing that each of these berries are unique?", Kairi inquired towards the Milotic, letting go of the embrace as she sat upright, curiosity seen in her chocolate-brown eyes.

Milotic gave Kairi a light nod of the head, knocking down one of the berries with her tail. "Yes. Many of these berries have uses that may prove beneficial," she said in a nonchalant tone, looking down at the berry that rolled into Kairi's lap. "Many of these berries are healthy. Some are bitter, while others can cure many ailments," she added in, knocking three berries down and letting them land in her open mouth. After chewing for a brief moment, savoring the taste, she swallowed it down, her attention directed back to Kairi. "Eat. Only then will I teach you what you must know about berries."

Kairi glanced down at the berry, grasping it with her hand. She was sure not to cause any harm to it, and she observed the berry, admiring the complexion and texture of the skin. It was purple-colored, which only enticed Kairi to eat it. Slowly, she rose it to her lips, before taking a subtle bite out of it, savoring the flavor as a smile formed on her face. Her eyes clearly showed her pleasure in the taste of the berry, and she swallowed it down. "It tastes sweet!~", she exclaimed, taking another bite before swallowing that piece down after a few seconds. "But, what purpose does this berry have?"

Milotic's expression showed that she was quite happy to explain things to her newest servant. "That berry is used as an antidote for many poisons. It is very useful when you are bitten, and it can help you with natural immunity," she explained to Kairi, her voice showing delight in telling Kairi all about berries. She knocked another berry into Kairi's lap, this time it was colored a crimson-red. "You should eat more before we have to leave here. Also, you must prove that you can collect these on your own."

Kairi nodded towards the Milotic, a smile seen on her face as she glanced down at the berry. "Alright," she said quietly, observing the berry. This time, it felt much more firm when compared to the last one, and the red color looked savory. She bit into it, expecting something sweet, juicy, and wonderful; but instead she was met with a bitter, unsavory taste that made her squint and swallow the contents in disgust. "T-That was….", she managed to make out, coughing as the aftertaste was far worse than she anticipated.

Milotic felt a bit guilty at letting Kairi taste the berry herself, knowing that it was bitter to begin with. "That berry isn't suitable for eating, but it is useful for healing burns," she explained to Kairi, hoping her servant would know better next time around. She slid Kairi off of her tail, placing the human on her two feet before pointing upwards towards the branches full of luscious berries. "Now, show me you can reach and collect the berries. Prove you are loyal enough to be my servant," the water-type said to Kairi in a calm, serene voice.

Kairi landed on the ground with a soft thud, wondering on what her mistress wanted at first. But afterwards, after her mistress spoke, it was clear to the human that the serpent was testing her. The human girl looked up into the branches above her, seeing the different colors of berries hanging on the branches by their firm stems. It was clearly around twenty feet above their very heads, but Kairi glanced back at her mistress with a kind smile. Even if it was her first day as a servant, Kairi aspired to be a great servant, if only for her mistress. "I can reach and collect them," she said calmly, placing a hand next to the branch above her as she glanced back at her mistress. "I'll do my best…" With that said, Kairi grasped the branch with both hands, and slowly hoisted herself up onto the branch. It was difficult to say the least, since for whatever reason, Kairi's arms seemed to be weary from the mere action of this. It could be because Kairi didn't do much of this before meeting her mistress, but there was no way Kairi could remember that part of her life anymore.

But, when the Milotic saw Kairi rest for a brief second from the meager activity, she spoke to her servant through telepathy in a calm, soothing voice. "You must work hard every day to prove you are loyal. You will get better with time." Despite sounding soothing, it had a tone of commandment underneath it, but at the same time, it sounded like words of encouragement as well. The serpent slithered on the ground, her rainbow-scales shimmering in the afternoon sun. "Do what you must to prove your loyalty," she added in, watching Kairi stand on her two human feet on the branch.

Kairi glanced back down towards her mistress, acknowledging the fact that her loyalty was the most precious thing in the world. 'I will prove myself, that I am sure of,' she thought to herself in determination, taking a small breath into her lungs before she hopped up, grasping another branch that was within her reach. Slowly, with her arms clearly trembling from the strain of the action, she hoisted herself up onto that one as well. As she laid on the branch like before, several quick breaths were done, and Kairi looked back down. She was at least ten feet off of the ground at this point, and slowly she got up to her feet once more. Why did this feel so hard? That was what she was wondering until she noticed a berry hanging down, just a mere few feet along the branch. Almost immediately, her heart seemed to rise, and a wave of excitement came over her. Slowly, she moved along the branch, feeling it quiver under her weight, but it was still stable. Then, Kairi saw that she was underneath the berry, and she raised a hand, wanting to touch it, to get it in her grasp. "Come on…", she whispered to herself, standing on her toes as she felt her finger brush against the purple skin of the berry. Then, after several seconds, Kairi's hand grasped it, and plucked it from the stem. A wide grin spread across her face, and she looked down, showing the berry in her hand to her mistress. "I-I got it!", she exclaimed, clearly excited to achieve this task.

Milotic watched her young servant's determination to prove herself, a serene smile growing upon her face. But, she knew that she could gather ten berries in the time it took for Kairi to climb the branches. Her reasoning was that she would not give her servant handouts for the tasks she appointed to her, instead she wanted to see her servant work harder, so she could see her efficiency grow. "That is one so far, Kairi. However, I want to see nine more come from that tree," she told her servant in a calm tone, her telepathy proving useful when it comes down to communication.

Kairi froze in her spot momentarily, feeling her heart sink at the mention of nine more. It took enough effort to collect one, let alone climb the branches. "Nine more…?", she asked in a quiet voice, glancing up at the branches above her. The berries were all there, taunting her about her weariness and inability to endure such hard work. But, if there was one thing that kept her going, it was to prove her loyalty to her mistress. "I can do this…", she muttered to herself, crouching down as she let the berry drop to the ground, seeing it land with a subtle thud. It didn't crack or fracture in the slightest. She stood upright on the branch once more, and proceeded to leap once again, grasping the branch and slowly hoisting herself up as she did before. When she laid on the branch, however, it was clear that she was getting rather tired, since her face, which was normally a brown due to her skin color, was now a pale brown from the sheer exhaustion she was going through. 'So…Tired….', she thought to herself, before noticing her mistress nodding towards something, along the branch.

"There, on the branch you're on. There's a red and yellow berry hanging. Do you see it?", the Milotic said to Kairi in her usual tone, pointing towards the berry with her fins. Indeed, there was a yellow berry, that had red stripes upon it, about the size of an apple, and dangling underneath where Kairi was laying. "Pick it, and eat it. It will help to boost your energy, but don't eat all of it. Save it for when you need a boost…"

Kairi glanced down, her hair falling down ever so slightly as she peered underneath the branch. True to her mistress's word, the berry hung there, waiting to be plucked. Kairi made sure she was in a good position, in order to prevent herself from falling, before she reached for the berry, easily plucking it from the stem as she raised it. She didn't doubt that her mistress was correct in what it did, but she hesitated for whatever reason, before biting into it. She chewed thoroughly, savoring the tangy, yet sweet, taste that it contained before she swallowed it down. The effects weren't immediate as Kairi expected, but after several minutes her weariness seemed to dissipate and replaced with the energy she had before she had started climbing. She rose up to her feet, and then glanced back down at her mistress. "Thank you," she said in a soft voice, before looking back up once more. Again, with the burst of energy in her system, Kairi proceeded to clamber up the next branch, then finally reach where all the berries were.

The Milotic observed Kairi reach where the berries were, and, fortunately for Kairi, she was very patient with her. The Milotic knew it would be a matter of time before she could collect berries by the dozen in no time at all. She saw Kairi set the red and yellow berry on the branch, and she advised Kairi, "Keep that berry with you. Use it if you feel weak. Now collect nine more berries…."

Kairi, needless to say, was quite happy to accept the task at hand, especially with the boost of confidence she had. "If that's your wish!~", she exclaimed in a cute tone, plucking two berries at once, then letting them fall to the ground. There was a small thud, and it was obvious that the berries were bruised from the way it sounded. Nonetheless, Kairi's hand quickly plucked more berries from their stems, until a small pile of ten, multi-colored berries laid upon the ground, waiting to be carried back to the cavern. She sat on the branch as she looked at the berries, swaying her legs lightly as she took a bite out of the berry once more. "And that makes ten," she muttered to herself, feeling quite proud for achieving such a thing, especially considering how she had felt prior to eating the berry. After several moments, Kairi slowly hopped down to the other branch, taking much caution in order to prevent any injury.

The Milotic had a look of wonder on her face as she watched Kairi climb down the tree. It would have been quite faster to help Kairi down, but the only way the human would learn would be if she had done it herself. She saw Kairi stand in front of her, and slowly the Milotic loomed over her, then lowered her head towards Kairi, so their eyes met. "You have done well. I am fortunate to have you as my servant," she started in a calm tone, wrapping a coil around Kairi's waist. After a few moments, the Milotic spoke to Kairi again. "Now, pick up the berries, and follow me back to my home." With that said, the Milotic's tail unwound from Kairi, and she glided along the ground for several feet. She looked back at Kairi, wanting the human to obey her orders.

Kairi felt pride in herself as she felt her mistress's slick coil wrap around her bare waist. She never wanted this feeling to go away, and as long as she served her mistress, Kairi was confident that it would remain. As quickly as Kairi could, she scooped up the berries (including the energy variant) and quickly walked towards her mistress. As soon as she arrived at the Milotic's side, they moved back to where they came from, ready to relax and sleep in the cavern. The sun was nearing the horizon, which meant that it would soon be night time before they knew it. That alone made the Milotic cautious, since it would probably be downright terrifying for her servant to be running around the forest in the dark. "So I did well?", she asked her mistress in a curious voice, still feeling the pride well up in her chest from her achievement.

Milotic nodded, looking at Kairi with a content look. "Yes, you did quite well," she said, annoyed that Kairi would ask after she had clearly said it before, but another feeling came up that seemed as if she was proud of what her servant had done. She pushed the notion aside, then glanced at Kairi once more, without any hint of clothing. She knew that clothing was usually used by humans to keep themselves warm, but without clothing, it was clear that Kairi would have a difficult time staying warm. Despite that, the MIlotic only hoped that the human would get used to it. Along the way back to the cavern, the Milotic glided into the air for a brief second or two, and snatched a berry that was colored an icy-blue. It was still a while until they would reach the cavern, so along the way, she told Kairi everything she knew about the berries. This ranged from where to find them, what they were used for, what taste they carried, which ones she should and shouldn't eat, and various other topics. Of course, this was a lot of information for Kairi, but with her memories sealed away, it would be quite easy to absorb this information.

When they finally reached the cavern, Milotic went inside first, making sure Kairi followed suit. She had to show where Kairi would place the berries. Most of the cavern was damp and slippery, but not enough to make the floors filled with puddles. This was probably much better for Kairi, so she wouldn't have to deal with the chilling temperatures that the waters can drop to. Towards the center of the cavern, there was a small pool of water that only went down for a few feet, and the circumference couldn't have been more than ten feet. About ten feet from the pool was a structure that had a similar appearance to a bowl, except about a foot in diameter. "Place the berries in that structure," she told Kairi in a quiet tone, slithering towards the structure to signal to her servant where it was.

Kairi glanced at her mistress again, feeling her bare feet press against the cold, damp cavern floor. Her entire body shivered, and it was clear that Kairi found the cold uncomfortable. Silently, she nodded and walked towards the structure. Kairi crouched briefly, placing each individual berry into the structure before all that was left in her hands was the energy-inducing berry. She stood up, and put on a faint smile as she crossed her arms, rubbing them lightly. "I-It's cold in here," she muttered to the Milotic, trying to put on a cheerful look.

Milotic glanced at Kairi, and slipped into the pool of water, seeing Kairi walk back towards her. "Your body will learn to live with it," she said bluntly, before presenting the berry towards Kairi, rolling it off of her tail and into her hands. "For now, this will help." She saw Kairi look at it blankly, before raising her hands towards her mouth with her tail. "Make sure to eat it fully. It will have a sour taste, but it will help you from feeling too cold," she added in, seeing Kairi look at the berry with fascination.

Kairi looked back at her mistress, and believed her words. A subtle nod came from her, and Kairi bit into the berry, being sure to chew it thoroughly as she had before. True to the serpent's word, it was sour, but Kairi swallowed it down, and proceeded to eat the berry. This took several minutes, of course, but over the course of those few minutes, Kairi felt the cold being reduced, and slowly it was nothing more until there was a small sting. Her body didn't shiver, and as Kairi swallowed down the last part, seed and all, she looked at the Milotic with a fascinated look. "What kind of berry is this?"

The Milotic looked at Kairi once more, seeing her shivering cease. That was a good sign, to say the least. "That berry is used to cure your body when it is frozen, but it can also be used if you feel cold," she explained to Kairi, happy to tell Kairi about these things, yet a yawn escaped her from the exhaustion she was experiencing. It echoed through the cave, and she let her head rest inside the pool of water, only half-submerged. "There is more for you to do tomorrow, my loyal servant. Rest for now, you have earned your sleep," she told Kairi quite calmly, shutting her eyes as she prepared herself for sleep.

Kairi gave off a smile, and bowed lightly to her mistress. "Thank you so much, Mistress," she said in a calm, content voice, rising up to an erect position. Her soft, chocolate-brown eyes looked at the Milotic soundly, a thought formulating in her mind. She didn't mention where she would sleep, so Kairi had to ask. She felt herself grow nervous, and a look of embarrassment flushed across her face, a blush appearing on her cheeks. "M-Mistress, do you mind if I sleep with you tonight?", she asked, looking down and tapping one of her feet against the stone floor.

The Milotic's eyes opened, and her head rose out of the water, just enough to where the bottom touched the surface. "No. I do not let anything use my scales as something to sleep on, especially a servant who will only taint my beauty with dirt," she told Kairi in a flat, harsh tone, not taking Kairi's feelings into consideration.

Kairi's expression turned from nervous to that of being upset, and her face turned slightly pale at her mistress's tone. "O-Oh….", was all she managed to say, sighing lightly as she brushed a hand against her collarbone, then looking back at the Milotic. "T-Then where shall I sleep?", she asked in a confused, hurt voice, finding herself upset at her mistress's word.

Milotic looked towards the tunnel that led to where they came from, then to another that was to their left. These led to the surface, where Kairi could surely find some materials for bedding. "You must find you own way to rest in my cavern," she said in a calm, stoic voice, looking at Kairi with a blank expression, devoid of any emotion in particular. "There are many things on the surface to use as bedding…If you do not feel safe traveling this late, then sleep on the ground. It does not matter to me how you sleep." The last statement sounded particularly harsh, but that could be because the Milotic was quite exhausted from what she had done earlier that day, not to mention giving Kairi her first lessons about what to do for services. She rested her head back into the pool of water, wanting to see what Kairi would do.

Kairi glanced at the tunnel, seeing that the pale moonlight spread along the entrance, casting shadows along the small dips and rises that the ground had. She bit her lip, then back to her mistress. If it wasn't her will, then she supposed that there wasn't much she could do about it. "A-Alright…." she stammered out, her heart sinking down to her stomach as she turned, walking towards a relatively flat portion of the cavern, just a mere ten feet away from where the raised pool was. Of course, it was damp, but that was the entire cavern as a whole. She sat on the ground, feeling a chill run down her spine before she laid on it. After several moments, she pulled her knees close to her chest, feeling rather cold, mainly due to her mistress's words going through her mind. She then proceeded to lay on her side, just happening to be facing away from her mistress. Kairi shut her eyes, and tried to fall asleep, but ultimately this failed, and she merely rested in that position.

Milotic heard the silence at last within the cavern, and was ready to fall asleep herself. She raised her head from the water, and looked at Kairi. Her servant was curled up in a ball, completely nude, and facing away from her. Perhaps it was because of the connection they had earlier, but whatever the cause, a part of the serpent felt guilty to watch a creature sleep in such an uncomfortable position, even if Kairi was merely a human. Several moments passed, and the Milotic couldn't bear to watch Kairi do this to herself for much longer. "Kairi… Come here for a moment," she called out to her, wanting her servant to be in a better mood then she was at the moment.

Kairi opened her eyes, and quickly sat upright as she looked back at her mistress. A confused look appeared on her face, and glumly she stood up onto her feet. She essentially dragged her feet along the floor as she walked towards her mistress, but despite this she tried her best to put on a smile. "Yes, my Mistress?" she asked in a much quieter tone, feeling herself quiver as she expected some kind of punishment from the Milotic. But at the same time, it was clear that Kairi was quite tired, assuming from the yawn she had done afterwards.

Milotic stared at the human for a few seconds, inspecting Kairi's body for any filth and grime before she felt the cool rush of water well up from inside, then shooting it onto Kairi's head firstly. Afterwards, her aim moved down Kairi's body, making sure to spray off any filth that Kairi may have had on her body. A minute passed with this constant spraying, and after the Milotic paused to look upon her, a content look appeared on her face, satisfied with Kairi's little shower. "There. You are much cleaner now," she said to her, glancing over her own scales for a moment. She normally wouldn't allow anything to sleep on her, but just this once wouldn't hurt. "You may sleep on my scales if you wish, but you must make your own bedding by tomorrow night," she explained to Kairi sternly. She was only doing this out of kindness, but instead she had made it sound as if it was something Kairi had to work for. "Consider this a gift from your mistress, my loyal servant…"

Kairi shivered after the shower was over, her senses jolted awake from the cool water. It was refreshing, for the time being at least, and after shivering lightly she had a smile appear on her face. It was amazing that her mistress would allow her to sleep on her scales, but at the same time she composed herself to what Kairi thought was a dignified look. "T-Thank you so much, mistress," she muttered out, truly grateful that she could be with her mistress for the night. She took a step into the water, feeling the sting of the cold return, but after a few seconds this vanished and she sat upon the mid-section of her mistress's body. It felt unusual, being with this beautiful creature, and being her servant. But, it seemed to be promising to say the least. Slowly, she laid on her stomach on her mistress, wrapping her arms around the serpent's body. She truly was grateful to be her servant. After all, if the Milotic had not found her, she would have probably not survived the day in the outside world. She shut her eyes, letting off a content sigh.

The Milotic stared at the human as she laid on her scales, wondering if she was doing the right thing when it came down to it. The human had done everything the serpent asked for, and she could even feel a small bond start to form, albeit weak, between her, as a servant and 'mistress.' The serpent even wondered if this is what a trainer felt with their Pokemon, but disregarded the notion as quickly as it came on. She shook her head, finding this to be different.

She couldn't go back now, that much was clearly evident. Kairi had to stay, if only to prevent her from exposing this place to trainers with those capsules. Just before the Milotic could drift off to a peaceful slumber, she shifted her coils so Kairi would remain dry throughout the night. "Good night….Human…."

Kairi nuzzled the serpent in a kind manner for a moment, feeling another yawn come along. After the cute yawn, she made a smile, feeling her weary body start to drift off to sleep. "Good night, my mistress~", she said in a near whisper, entering a peaceful slumber that would not be disturbed in the slightest until the morning sun arose. There would be more duties in the morning; that was plain to see. But what they would be, that would have kept Kairi awake if she wasn't so exhausted.


	3. Chapter II

Kairi felt the wind roll past her, the fresh smell of flowers in the air as her chocolate-brown eyes looked upon an unfamiliar tree. Her snow-white hair shimmered in the afternoon sun, and a smile was upon her face. The flowers in the tree were pink, apple blossoms, to be more precise, and the leaves were a crisp emerald-green. The girl looked around momentarily, realizing that this was no place that she was ever in. No one was here, and yet, for some reason, something felt missing. Something was amiss, that was for certain, and the place seemed slightly familiar. Was it a mind trick, or merely a moment of déjà vu?

She took several steps away from the tree, glancing around at the odd place. What was missing? Where was she? So many questions buzzed through her mind that it made a headache start to come on. She fell onto her knees, her hands grasping her head of white hair as she looked down at the cobblestone. "W-Where am I…?" she muttered to herself, before looking around once more. No one was around. Kairi felt like she was supposed to see someone. Who it was, she had no idea.

It was then that a small pain welled up in her chest, as if crushing her heart before she collapsed on the ground; her arms sprawled in front of her. Also, a gentle, serene voice called out to her, one that rung through her mind as calmly as ever. Finally, there was a small touch of something smooth upon her bare back.

"Kairi…Awaken…"

As Kairi stirred from her slumber, the Milotic's tail had laid across Kairi's bare back. The sunlight had revealed that it was early morning, and the Milotic had not bothered to emerge from her pool of chilling waters. She poked Kairi's head lightly with her tail fins, wanting her servant to wake up on her own accord. It was rude, after all, to force someone to wake from a peaceful slumber. "It is time to serve me, my servant."

Kairi stirred from her slumber, and let off a gentle yawn as she stretched her arms and legs, her chocolate-brown eyes slowly opening. A slight smile appeared on her face as she realized that she was safe, and that there was no need to worry about anything; because her mistress cared and tended for her, and in exchange the human would serve her. Slowly, Kairi sat upright on the Milotic, feeling the smooth, rainbow-colored scales slide across her lap, something which eased Kairi even more, save for the cold water that dripped from it and onto her bare skin. "Good morning…Mistress," she said in a calm tone, stretching her arms once more and letting off another yawn.

The water-type gave Kairi a stern look, yet it appeared calming and caring at the same time, an unusual combination. Nevertheless, she let off a subtle smile as she noticed the human appear well rested, a change from the day before where the human was lethargic and worried about her position. Her tail wound around Kairi's waist then draped over her shoulders loosely. "Did you sleep well on my scales, my young servant?" she questioned Kairi curiously, wondering whether or not this mere action allowed her servant to be comfortable.

With a quick nod of the head, Kairi let off a wide grin at the Milotic's question. "Mmmhmm! They felt really nice to sleep on," she mused out, shifting herself on the scales as she rubbed the side of the coil that she was seated upon with her bare hand. "So nice and soft…It was like sleeping on a cloud." At this comment, she looked back at her mistress, and blinked once as she looked down at her submerged body, the tips of her toes touching the icy surface of the water, sending a small chill down her spine at the feel of it.

Milotic shared a smile as she heard Kairi's comment towards her, and she shifted her tail fins so it rubbed Kairi's cheek as it unwound from her shoulders. It satisfied the beautiful water-type to hear the girl talk so affectionately about her scales. "You have flattered me once again, Kairi. But do note that it won't work all of the time," she told Kairi sternly, yet making sure that her tone was also sweet, making Kairi notice how pleased she seemed from the compliment. She raised her head out of the water as the condensation dripped down her head, and along with this her body moved the portion that held Kairi outside of the pool, setting it on the cool cavern floor as the serpent saw her feet touch the floor firmly. "Fetch the berries and bring them here. Eat what you must to fill your stomach," she commanded in a cool voice, looking as Kairi hopped off of the coil lightly.

As Kairi stood upright, stretching her limbs as she shivered once, she glanced back at the Milotic and gave her a nod of the head. "Of course mistress! ~", she exclaimed, a smile forming on her face as she briskly walked over to the open structure that had the berries from the day before. Kairi crouched down and picked them up, shivering as she noticed that the berries were wet from the humidity of the cavern. After a minute or two, she set them onto the cavern floor, before sitting down cross-legged as she looked upon them. "Would you like to have some?", she asked her mistress, looking up at her with her innocent brown eyes, a light smile fixed on her face as she leaned forward.

The Milotic gently moved out of her pool as she looked upon the nude human, a calmed look on her face. "Of course. But always refer to me as Mistress, never forget that," the water-type said to Kairi in a stern tone, lowering her mouth as her tongue quickly grabbed a berry or two. She chewed them thoroughly, before moving onto the next berry. Her large, brown eyes watched Kairi as she took a berry, biting into it. The juices stained the corner of her mouth, which somewhat made the Milotic upset, since she felt that, if a human were to serve her, she should at least have the decency to keep herself clean while eating. Of course, a gentle smile was upon Kairi's face as she ate the berry, not daunted at all by the method she ate.

However, the more the water-type observed Kairi, the more she became interested in the human body. This was in a manner that would resemble an artist observing a painting. Her tail shifted beside Kairi, before lifting it up, poking and prodding Kairi's nude form as she tried to get a good understanding of her body. While Kairi ate, her mistress even made her fins prod Kairi's chin upward for a moment. "Lift up your arm," she told Kairi sternly, watching Kairi raise her arm, disappointed that the berry was out of reach at that moment.

Kairi had done as she was told, as a servant would be expected to do. However, there was a small, faint red tint along her face. This was quite new; having someone poke her with their fins was not an experience Kairi was used to. Her blush grew deeper when the Milotic moved her tail along her collarbone, then to her hips. "M-Mistress, I-I don't know if…I-I…What exactly are you doing?", Kairi asked, finding herself a bit flustered from the mere activity that her Mistress was expressing with the prodding.

The Milotic receded her tail as she curled it around Kairi, pulling her servant closer to her, even if it was a mere few inches. She saw Kairi eat another berry, perhaps to try to hide her embarrassment. This led to another, and another, all in rapid succession. The beautiful serpent thought to herself, debating on what to do. After all, she had already done enough to Kairi for her to be a servant, but what about her appearance? It seemed that Kairi had potential; after all she had a slim figure. Not only that, but it would be fitting to have a beautiful servant for a Pokémon as beautiful as herself. Milotic scratched her fins along Kairi's bare back, a small smile forming on her face. "I have decided, Kairi." She draped a coil around one of Kairi's shoulders, her fins still brushing against the girl's back. "If you are going to be my loyal servant, then you should also become as beautiful as I am~", the serpent mused out, looking at Kairi with a serious appearance spreading across her face. "I believe I can make your body as fair as mine, but it takes more than beauty to become truly beautiful. I must also teach you how to be as graceful as can be."

At the mention of this, Kairi nearly choked on the berry, coughing a bit as she covered her throat. However, this did not stop her from letting off an excited expression. "Y-You could really do that?!" the teenager said in a loud, excited tone, a wide smile spreading across her face. Even though Kairi had known her mistress for a little bit (since her memories had been locked away), it was enough time for Kairi to develop a sort of envy for the Milotic's beautiful body. Even if she was a serpent, the way she was composed most of the time, not to mention the fins and rainbow-colored scales, had always caught Kairi's utmost attention.

Milotic saw Kairi's eyes brighten up at the mention of her intentions. She could make the dark-skinned human beautiful, it was within her powers and abilities; however, the water-type felt the need to correct herself on the matter. "Only as beautiful as a human could possibly be. You could never be as beautiful as I am," she told Kairi sternly, almost acting stuck up, merely from her physical appearance. "Follow me; you have more important things to do than lounge around, eating berries." With this, the Milotic floated to the entrance of the cavern, her body a mere feet off of the ground as it swirled in a lovely motion.

Kairi was quick in getting up onto her feet, swift in running over to the Milotic. She slid along the floor for a brief moment, accidentally bumping into her mistress, who had set herself onto the ground. Kairi briefly fell onto the ground, and she saw her Mistress look at her with an unusual look. "S-Sorry," she stated, getting back onto her feet and giving the beautiful serpent a bow of apology.

The Milotic merely gave Kairi a small glance of acknowledgement of the incident, and she didn't seem to give off an expression at all. Not even a small mention of taking in the apology, which only caused Kairi to feel somewhat nervous. The two walked out into the morning daylight, the sunlight streaming through the trees and other foliage, casting shadows as they became gnarled on the stream that had entered the cavern. The water-type looked at Kairi for a moment, her stern appearance not changing at all. Minutes passed, and the Milotic led Kairi into the forest foliage, her scales silently rubbing against the leaves. The teenager had a difficult time keeping up at first, accidentally tripping against rocks and roots as she moved along. Before long, however, Kairi saw her mistress curled around a tree, looking at Kairi with a bored expression in her eyes. The primary color of the berries that were revealed in the branches above was a bright red color. She looked up at the branches, and spoke to Kairi after a minute. "You need to gather the berries up in the branches above. I will not aid you with gathering, my servant," she explained to Kairi, looking down at the nude human, a blank look upon her face.

Her bare feet treaded upon the soft soil, and Kairi looked up at the berries, a curious expression seen on her face. "What are these berries for?" she asked her mistress soundly, walking up to the Milotic as her brown eyes blinked once. "Are we gathering food again?"

In response to the thought of eating these berries for food, the Milotic couldn't help but shudder at the mere thought. She knew that some of the berries that were being held by the tree were inedible, but the water-type was willing to forgive Kairi for her ignorance, since she knew that most humans didn't live off of berries. "These will be used to bring beauty and life to your skin and hair. It is important that you pick only the best, since I will never allow my servant to be less than decent."

With a nod of the head, Kairi approached the tree, much like the day before. "A-Alright," she stammered out, moving her arms around the base of the tree. However, she was quickly interrupted by her mistress. Kairi didn't appear upset at all at this, and she gave her full attention towards the serpent.

Milotic wrapped her tail around one of the branches, slightly hovering as she looked down upon Kairi. "You can make it easier for yourself, and it would make me happier, if you were to shake the branches for the berries," she explained to Kairi in a calm demeanor, demonstrating as she shook the branch once to allow a few berries to fall to the ground. Only one of the berries burst open, which was an indicator that it was a bad berry from the height that it fell from. "It will make it faster, and make me less impatient. Do you understand, my young servant?" the Milotic inquired to the young, nude servant, a stern look appearing on her face as her fins slipped against the ground once more. She was willing to put up with Kairi's incompetence, only because she knew that Kairi would need to adjust to this lifestyle.

A timid blush appeared on Kairi's face, knowing that she wasn't good at this, at least for now. With an understanding nod of approval, she took a hold of the branch above her head and shook it to a certain degree. The tree swayed a bit, but the branches bounced with each shake that she caused. Berries fell from the tree itself, being different colors for each one; some of them remained intact while others ruptured. However, the Milotic did not complain in the slightest, as the integrity of the berries did not matter for what she had in mind.

The water-type merely gave a glance towards the branches above them, wondering if Kairi had gotten all of the berries after all. However, there was a lone berry up above, at least eight feet above their heads. Even though this wouldn't normally be a problem for herself, she was unsure whether Kairi would be able to or not. Not only that, but what about Pokémon that may have resided here? Nonetheless, the risk was there, but the payoff would be better. "Kairi, see that berry up there? Prove you are strong for your mistress, and retrieve it for me." Kairi would succeed, as she was a servant, not a child. Milotic would not treat her as a child for incompetence.

Kairi looked up into the branches of the tree, seeing the lone red-orange berry that hung there on one of the limbs. It was further than she climbed the previous day, but Kairi knew that she had to do this for her mistress. After all, she was grateful for the Milotic to take her in after losing her memory. That act alone made Kairi happy beyond belief. For all she knew, she could have ended up with broken limbs or worse. "Alright mistress, I won't disappoint you!" Quickly, Kairi climbed through the branches at a quicker pacing than yesterday, getting tired at points but resuming after short breaks. It wasn't long before Kairi finally plucked the berry from the branch, a grin of triumph on her face. "I-I got it, mistress!" she exclaimed, her heart welling up with this success.

However, a Pokémon loomed over her from above. It had agitated cream-colored eyes that glared at her with a rotten yellow color on its body. The vine extended from its back and quickly wrapped around Kairi's nude form. A scream escaped her, saying that she needed help as the berry was dropped. This was none other than a Victreebell, who dropped down onto the branch below, ready to take Kairi as punishment for disturbing his sleep.

Milotic was quick in catching the berry as it fell, however, and glared up at the grass-type that dared to take her servant hostage. It even looked as if it would devour Kairi! This was unacceptable! Without a moment's notice, the Milotic shot out a single beam of ice that hit the Victreebell. The vine dropped Kairi, who landed on the branch below with a thud and a yelp. It wasn't long before ice crystallized on the grass-type's body, indicating that he was frozen. The water-type took a sigh of relief, watching Kairi pull herself back up onto the branch. From the looks of it, she wasn't harmed at all. Milotic moved towards the base of the tree, wrapping her rainbow scales around her servant's shoulders and chest to provide emotional comfort. "Are you alright, my servant? That heathen didn't hurt you did it?" she asked Kairi in a concerned tone. Her eyes reflected the attitude she took towards the servant, being a stern yet gentle one, conflicting moods in one simple stare.

Kairi, shivering and frightful at that moment, took comfort in knowing that her mistress was there beside her. The Milotic seemed to carry this sense of protection and safety wherever she went, no matter what the situation was. Kairi always found herself calmed by the Milotic's presence. They've only known each other for a little over a day, yet to Kairi, it felt as if she had known Milotic her entire life. When the scales wrapped around Kairi's bare shoulders, draping over her chest as well, Kairi's shivering ceased, and a content look appeared on her face. "I-I'm alright, thanks to you, mistress…" she said to the Milotic calmly, rubbing her hand against the scales.

To show that she did care for Kairi, Milotic rubbed her big head against Kairi's abdomen. Using telepathy had its benefits, especially in the aspect of sensing feelings. Although it's not nearly as strong as a Gardevoir or Gallade, Milotic can sense them enough to where she knows how one is feeling. Kairi felt calm, and Milotic unwrapped from around her. The water-type moved towards the tree with edible berries, proceeding to shake it with her tail to allow some to fall. "You will be alright, my servant. Collect all of the berries from the ground; we're returning back," she said sternly, somewhat contradicting the gentle moment that she had just a mere few seconds ago.

After a moment to herself, Kairi complied with the Milotic's statements. After all, if she were to stay, she would probably be in danger because of the Victreebell. "Alright Mistress, allow me to get down," she said to the Milotic, slowly climbing down from the branch. It was a minute before Kairi finally placed her bare feet onto the soft forest ground. Her eyes took in the sight of many berries lying on the ground, and she looked up at the Milotic with a concerned look on her face. "Mistress, t-this is a lot of berries! How am I supposed to carry these?" she asked her mistress in a worried tone. Despite some of the berries being as small as her pinky, there were others that were the size of apples as well.

"It must be done Kairi. Unless you are a weak servant to mistress," the Milotic said to Kairi in a stern tone of voice, seeing Kairi wince at the thought of that. Even though she had to be stern to Kairi, Milotic must seem more overpowering to Kairi than she really was. It's all about superiority and inferiority, just like a trainer and their Pokémon in Milotic's eyes. The human gathered up the berries into her arms, and Milotic could see the strain that Kairi had in carrying that large amount of berries in her bare arms. Admittedly, she would have offered a hand in aiding her, but would Kairi learn? No, she wouldn't, so she would not help at all. "Come Kairi, back to the cave," she said to Kairi soundly, moving through the foliage at a slow pace.

The human walked behind her mistress, eagerness in her eyes, but also worry flashing through them. Kairi could feel the berries starting to weigh her down, particularly when she crossed the stream. Most of the berries were quite large, and it wasn't long before Kairi could feel herself become strained. After several minutes, her legs shaking and trembling, Kairi finally collapsed onto the ground. Her knees trembled and bowed as she collapsed upon them, and finally she fell into her stomach. The berries Kairi carried fell upon the ground, rolling away from the human as she clenched the ground. Her eyes welled up with tears, and Kairi felt ashamed that she allowed simple berries to outdo her.

The Milotic felt pity, feeling the sensation of sadness that Kairi had welling up inside of her. Slowly, she moved towards the teenager, her tail brushing the berries alongside her so that they rolled back towards Kairi. She could even hear Kairi crying a little bit, something that confused the Milotic a bit. "Kairi, there is no need to cry," she said to her servant calmly, trying to retain a pacifistic presence towards Kairi. The Milotic pushed towards Kairi a berry similar to the one earlier that had given her some strength, knowing that it will rejuvenate her servant.

"B-But mistress, I failed you!" Kairi exclaimed, pushing herself up to look at the beautiful serpent with tears in her eyes. "I-I can't even carry this amount of berries…"

With her eyes widening, she placed the berry into Kairi's hand. "You still have legs, do you not? You have arms to carry these berries with, yes? You haven't failed me, my servant; only if you give up you fail me. This is what you would call 'training.' You are training to serve me better." The Milotic stood up before Kairi, making her look more presentable as her tail prodded Kairi's back, encouraging her to stand up. "I want you to become strong, beautiful and filled with grace as my servant. Now eat the berry, and we'll continue back to the cavern." As she said this, she wrapped her coil around Kairi's chest, giving her a nuzzle with her cheek in an effort to calm Kairi.

Kairi looked at the berry, recognizing it from earlier. She knew that her limbs were fine. Her mistress was right; failing her would only be an option for giving up. She wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, happier now that her mistress consoled her. "Alright, mistress…" Kairi said quietly, biting into the berry briefly as she felt a warmth flow through her aching arms and legs. Her mistress slipped her coils off of her, and Kairi went back to work. Quickly, she gathered the berries into her arms, finding that they weren't as heavy as she thought they were just mere minutes ago. She stood up onto her bare feet once more, and let off a sincere smile. "Well then, shall we get going?"

Pleased to see Kairi bounce back from seemingly despair, the Milotic traveled alongside her servant as they took the berries back into the cavern. She urged Kairi to eat the berry that prevents cold, and she did as they entered the cavern once more.

Taking a different take on the berries today, the Milotic motioned Kairi to come towards a concave structure that resembled a small pond, deep enough to submerge Kairi completely, but small enough around to make it easy to take a bath in and sit in as well. "Put the berries in here," she said bluntly, watching Kairi set the berries into the structure. The Milotic saw the berries roll in, settling at the bottom of the concave rock. "Now, step in and be sure to mesh them into a paste."

A bit confused by this request the more she spoke, Kairi obliged, slipping over the edge of the structure silently before planting her feet onto the bottom. She lost her balance with a small yelp, crushing some of the berries as she regained it.

"Good, keep doing it until they are crushed." The Milotic watched as Kairi managed to crush more berries with each moment, her servant shivering in disgust at the soft insides of the berries themselves. This took several minutes until the plethora of berries were made into a paste, coating the bottom of the structure with the sticky complexion. As Kairi climbed out again, the Milotic sprayed fresh cold water into the structure to combine it with the paste. It wasn't long before it was filled enough to where Kairi could sit down and become submerged up to her neck. "Now stir it with your hands until it becomes thick."

A gulp escaped Kairi as the sheer smell of the berries, which was sort of nauseating to her senses, before she dug her hand into the mixture of juice and water. Slowly, but surely, Kairi stirred with her hand, causing the murky berry juices to cling to the water itself.

"That's it, keep stirring," her mistress calmly droned, nuzzling Kairi's cheek in an effort to keep the human enjoyed by this activity. The Milotic observed Kairi for several minutes as she stirred the juices, before receding her hand from the mixture. When the mixture clung onto Kairi's arm was when the Milotic knew that the bath was ready. "Get into the bath now, Kairi," she said sternly, using her fins to gently brush against Kairi's back in an encouraging manner.

With a subtle nod of the head, Kairi stepped into the tub, submerging most of her body in it as the mixture went up to her neck. It was a very strange sensation to submerge herself in this, as it was quite sticky and somewhat difficult to move around in. "W-What do I do now?" Kairi inquired, shivering as the cool water gave her goose bumps.

A stern expression crossed her mistress's face as she took her fins, lightly pressing on Kairi's head of white hair in an effort to guide her. "Submerge yourself for a few seconds. I'll spread the mixture around your body," the Milotic suggested, feeling her servant take in a deep breath as she submerged her entire body into the mixture. Using her tail, she evenly pressed the mixture against Kairi's skin to absorb the nutrients that the berries provided. "This will help to make your body soft and smooth, and it will give your skin a nice sheen," she explained to her servant with telepathy, hoping that the human felt comfortable in the tub of berry juice.

Kairi felt the fins brush against her as she tried to keep herself in a position that allowed them to get every corner. Even though the mixture felt very sticky, it was strangely very soothing. When her mistress spoke, she nodded in agreement. Finally, after the fins receded, she popped her head up out of the mixture, taking in a deep breath of fresh air. "You're sure that this will help me become beautiful?" Kairi asked her mistress curiously, wondering if it was true that the bath would help her appearance.

"Yes, I am positive that this will work," she stated to her servant in a calm, almost monotone voice. Milotic slithered over to a small crack in the ceiling, which she used to tell time. It was still fresh morning, with the sunlight barely creeping over the edge of the crack. "But I need you to stay in there until the sun reaches directly above," she told Kairi sternly, knowing that she would protest.

As expected, Kairi protested towards her mistress. "B-But that won't be for a long time!" she exclaimed, before noticing her mistress throw her a cold glare from her usual non-emotional expression. Kairi gulped, before speaking again. "W-What am I supposed to do until then…?"

A smile formed on her face, for the Milotic wasn't planning on having Kairi stay awake the entire time. However, the stern expression quickly appeared on her face as she spoke to Kairi through telepathy. She needed to assert her position, and her voice was cold briefly. "It will take much work for you to become a beautiful servant for your mistress. You must work hard and endure these trials. I'm certain that you know what will happen to servants who disobey me."

She leaned in closer towards Kairi, the smile reforming on her face in an effort to soothe her servant. "But there is no need to worry. I have something else I must use your mind for, instead of complaining idly," Milotic said to Kairi calmly, staring into her eyes calmly. Finally, rays invisible to the naked eye were emitted by the Milotic, wrapping themselves around Kairi's consciousness. This was the very same hypnosis that was used to 'capture' Kairi.

Kairi blinked for a moment, feeling herself becoming quelled by what seemed like nothing. The human could feel her mind go blank, and a calm smile appeared on her face as she sank into the bath a little bit more. "What is…Mis…tress?" she slowly said in a quiet voice, before shutting her eyes.

The Milotic stopped the hypnosis once she was certain that Kairi was in a tranquil state of mind. She found that, over the years, when Pokémon were in a certain state of mind under hypnosis it was possible to influence their thoughts. Humans probably weren't too different when given the same conditions. It was particularly easy with telepathy, as it enabled the mind to take commands with ease. Milotic spoke to Kairi once more. "You can only become strong, beautiful and full of grace, when you are working hard for me. If you wish to become a loyal servant, you must work hard for me, Kairi." When her servant made a very subtle nod of the head in response, she continued. "You must work hard. Work hard and your wish will come true…"

A moment passed, and the Milotic decided to continue with encouraging Kairi. She learned as a Feebas that having a beautiful body required thinking of a beautiful body over a long period of time. Kairi should think the same, and Milotic used the state she was in to her advantage.

"Imagine a better body than you have now. Think of having skin that is softer, healthier, and radiant like my scales. Your hair can become lighter, and have a brighter shine to it." She slipped her fins inside of the berry bath to rub Kairi's stomach in an effort to soothe her servant even more than before. "Also, imagine your arms and legs becoming stronger, able to lift a hundred berries and not falter. Picture this as you sleep, and your body will accept this."

Slipping her fins out of the mixture, she slithered back to her small pool of water. Noticing that the mixture had clung onto her scales, the Milotic blew cold water at it to wash herself off. Her eyes widened when she found out that the mixture had a very reddish color, much like her own fins and scales. A smile formed on her face, knowing that this was going to be very interesting to see when the bath was over. Without further to do, she slipped into her pool of water, waiting for Kairi's bath to be done.


	4. Chapter III

Four hours passed after Kairi entered the bath, and finally she awoke inside of the berry bath. Her eyes fluttered open briefly, letting off a small yawn as she stretched her arms. "What time is it..?" she asked herself in a curious manner, turning towards the edge of the structure as she looked around. Her mistress was still asleep (as her resting area was further into the cavern), and the light was beaming directly down through the crack. At first, her tired brain didn't notice it. But as she looked once more, her heart rose inside of her chest. "Mistress! It's directly above!" she exclaimed, wanting her mistress to witness her after taking the bath.

Her mistress opened her eyes, waking up from her peaceful little nap when her servant shouted for her. Milotic slithered through the cavern, seeing Kairi looking at her from the bath. The pungent smell of the berries had grown over the past four hours, and judging from how the juice looked on Kairi's skin, it appeared that it became stickier as well. The mistress was anxious to see how the effects were on Kairi's skin and hair. "How do you feel? Are you ready to be cleansed?"

At first, Kairi was about to speak to her mistress. But the strong smell of the berry mixture caused Kairi to become a bit light-headed from it. Deciding against it, Kairi nodded briefly towards her mistress, wanting to get out of the bath as soon as possible.

The Milotic drew in a deep breath and sprayed cool water towards Kairi, making sure to not harm her with the strong pressure she had. She didn't want to accidentally bruise or break Kairi's skin after working on it for so much. What didn't come off from the water, Milotic used her fins to brush it off as well, being as careful as ever.

When her servant was clear of any juice and drenched by the water, Milotic almost gave off a smile as she saw the results of what had happened. The berry bath was doing its job properly, and Milotic knew that it would take time to make her servant's body perfect. She especially liked the detail it had on Kairi's hair, which her servant would find out firsthand soon enough. "Now come, my servant. Stand before me in the light."

Shivering, wet and cold, Kairi, despite the feeble appearance she portrayed, showed a sort of excitement in showing her mistress just what exactly she looked like. Even Kairi didn't quite know what exactly she appeared to be, but that didn't matter, for she wanted it to be a surprise as well. "O-Of course, mistress," Kairi managed to mutter out towards the Milotic, walking towards the stream of light. As she stepped into it, the beads of water that were on her reflected some of the light, making her appearance all the more attractive. "How does it look…?" Kairi asked her mistress curiously, looking at the back of her hands for a moment, noticing that her skin had a reddish hue to them.

The Milotic slithered around Kairi, her coils making a complete circle around her as she looked at her servant top to bottom. The serpent was very impressed with how the berries had purified her skin, and the servant's red hair was everything she expected. It almost felt like Kairi could have passed for a daughter of hers if she wasn't a human. Gently, she brushed her tail against Kairi's skin, starting from her leg and moving up to her chest, noticing how much softer her skin was after a single bath. It was a significant improvement over what she had prior. "You look lovely, Kairi," she mused, placing her fin underneath Kairi's chin so she could tip it up slightly. "The bathing made your skin and hair look beautiful. Look and feel for yourself, my servant," Milotic told Kairi, taking her fins and motioning her to come towards her pool of water. "Look into the water, and do not be afraid."

Hesitant at first, Kairi walked with her mistress towards the pool, thoughts racing through her head. There was a whole plethora of feelings that welled up in her, such as joy, bliss, confusion. But when Kairi looked into the pool of water, reflecting her appearance almost like a mirror, Kairi's eyes widened with fascination. "Is this really…me?" she asked her mistress in a voice of awe, taking her hand and brushing her strands of red hair (it was still wet) to and fro briefly. She rubbed her cheeks, feeling that they were soft to the touch, and a silly smile grew upon her face.

The Milotic wrapped two coils around Kairi's bare hips, having a calm voice as she spoke to her servant. "You enjoy your new looks, I see," she said to Kairi, feeling a little bit of pride well up inside of herself. After all, she was the one that planned the berry mixture for Kairi, and it worked wonderfully, she might add. "Looks are not everything, however. Your body is becoming more beautiful and healthy; you must also act beautiful as well."

Kairi wanted to hug her mistress close, give her thanks for what she had done for her. But, she knew that the Milotic probably wouldn't want anything like that at this moment. When she mentioned acting beautiful, Kairi appeared confused, wondering how that could work. Without looking up, she glanced at the reflection of her mistress. "How are we going to do that?"

The Milotic moved away from Kairi, uncoiling her as she circled the servant once more. "I will train you to act beautiful. Although you will never be as beautiful as your mistress, if you work hard, Pokémon and humans alike will bow before your beauty," she told Kairi quite calmly. She knew that this was exaggerating quite a bit, but had to think to herself about how much Kairi would want to achieve this goal. She started to move towards her pool of water, speaking to Kairi in a calm voice. "But that will be saved for another time. For now, your mistress does not need you." Milotic circled into her pool of water, displacing a small portion of the water as she let off a small yawn. "If you wish to sleep comfortably tonight, find what you need to make your bedding. I will not always let you sleep on my scales…"

Kairi seemed to be a bit disappointed that her mistress had no ideas for her at this moment. However, she bowed lightly towards the Milotic. "I'll do my best to be the best servant for you, mistress," she said calmly, restraining herself from giving her thanks for the bath, for she didn't quite know how her mistress would react. Turning on her heel, she walked towards the entrance, leaving the Milotic to rest.

While her servant went off, the Milotic rested herself in the pool of water. She thought to herself about how there were other Pokémon in the surrounding area. She knew that most wouldn't bother Kairi due to her unusual situation and scent, but there were others that wouldn't be quite so kind to Kairi.

Shielding her eyes from the daylight, Kairi took in a breath of fresh air as she looked in awe at the forest. With her mistress, she was so focused on the Milotic, but now that she was on her own, Kairi didn't quite realize how vast and large this forest was.

"Where exactly do I even start…?" Kairi asked herself curiously, walking forward as she looked to and fro, wondering precisely what to have her bedding made of. There was the thought of using water like her mistress, but that probably wouldn't be such a great idea considering water cools. However, when she looked at leaves, it occurred to her that perhaps she could use these for bedding after all. With a smile, she walked over to some foliage, rubbing a leaf in her hand as she crouched before it. "This could actually work," she muttered to herself, before starting to pick some leaves off of the bush.

Above Kairi, a shadow watched her as she left the cavern, confused as to why there was a nude human in the forest. It drew closer to Kairi inside of the branches as it grew more interested as Kairi messed around with the leaves. Finally, it leaped through the branches, making its presence known as he swung on a branch near Kairi. The trademark silly grin appeared on his face as he let off an, "AI-POM!" It appeared to want to have Kairi's undivided attention, as she was the first human that didn't appear like any others he had seen.

Kairi looked up in an instant as soon as it made its appearance, wondering what it was that called for her. When she saw that it was a Pokémon that she had never seen before, her heart sank, and she appeared frightened. A shriek was heard from her, and almost immediately she crouched down, covering her head. "P-Please don't hurt me!" she exclaimed, afraid that this one would try to hurt her like the other one before.

Aipom took the same action as well, leaping back onto the branch and curling up into a small ball. He had thought that the human would harm him from her first reaction. After he opened his eyes, the pain not coming after all, and looked down at the ground he seemed confused. Why was this human curled up on the ground before him? No human could possibly be that frightened of him. He climbed down the tree and moved towards her before poking her back with his glove-like tail. "Pom?"

Kairi looked frightened as she glanced at the Aipom, not knowing his intentions. He could have killed her at that moment! "W-What are you…?" she said with fear trembling in her voice, hoping that he didn't have any intention to harm her.

The Aipom appeared confused, for this human was afraid of Pokémon! It wasn't like any other humans he had seen before, who always appeared upset or annoyed by Pokémon. He stood on his tail, acting like it was a spring as he raised himself. "Aipom! Oo-Oh!" he exclaimed, quickly picking up three small rocks as he started to juggle with them, hoping that this gesture would entertain the human.

Blinking, confounded by the Aipom's action, Kairi returned herself into a seated position, seeing the Aipom juggle the rocks. He tried a few things here and there, such as tossing one rock higher than the other or perhaps even moving his paws behind his head briefly to juggle. She clapped after a few minutes of this, realizing that this Pokémon was friendly. She didn't even need to say anything, as Kairi's expression showed brightness to his presence.

Seeing that the human was clapping in the amusement he provided, he set the rocks back down onto the ground and bowed towards her. He extended his tail above his head towards Kairi, offering a shake of the hand. He wasn't entirely sure if she was still frightened towards him, and wanted to get closer to Kairi for a hug. He waited patiently for a handshake.

At first, Kairi was confused, wondering what exactly he wanted from her. Then, after a moment, she realized what it was the Aipom wanted. Kairi extended her hand, shaking his tail in a sweet gesture. "My name is Kairi, what about yours?" she asked the Aipom curiously, wondering what it was that he called himself.

"Aipom!" he stated as soon as Kairi finished the handshake. A grin appeared as he leaped up into the air quickly, and landed on Kairi's lap. The Aipom seemed to have fun with the new friend he had made, and also enjoyed how soft and warm her lap felt. He nuzzled Kairi's bare stomach, trying to snuggle up to it.

Kairi felt flattered by Aipom's actions, finding that her mistress' words may be coming true after all. She had attracted the attention of a Pokémon she had never met before, and even befriended it perhaps. Kairi stroked his head lightly with her hand, smiling as she shut her eyes. What would her mistress say if she decided to tell her about this incident? Would she be proud, or wary that she was attracting unwanted attention? A calm look was on Kairi's face as she decided to use his friendship as an advantage. "Would you like to help me pick and carry leaves?" she asked the Aipom calmly, wondering what he would do if she asked kindly.

The Aipom blinked briefly, a little bit confused as he could not understand the human language. He looked over at the small pile of leaves, and it finally clicked. It explains why Kairi was checking out the leaves and playing with them earlier, and he leaped off of Kairi towards the pile of leaves. He made a sound of encouragement before continuing to pick more leaves for Kairi. He hoped that there was some way that he could gain approval from the beautiful human, already knowing that she was quite different from other humans.

Before long, he picked up a good portion of leaves with his tail, making sure to not let any drop. He turned to Kairi, who had picked up the rest of them as well. "Come along now," Kairi mused, walking with the Aipom towards where she had came from. She was happy to know that she had made a friend outside of the cavern, and perhaps she could have him help her out some more as well. As they walked into the cavern after several minutes of walking, Kairi started to wonder about her mistress' reaction towards the news.

Almost immediately after Kairi set foot into the cavern, Milotic felt another presence alongside Kairi. She wondered why Kairi would allow another Pokémon to come into the cave with her, and raised her head to look at her servant. The moment that her icy glare saw Aipom, he hid behind the beautiful human as they stopped walking, afraid of the serpent herself.

Kairi let off a small smile as she bowed towards her mistress, holding the leaves close to her as she acted how a servant should; respectful towards their mistress. "I'm back, mistress. Did you sleep well?" she asked the Milotic soundly, seeing her mistress come out of the pool and move towards her with an indifferent look.

The Aipom shivered more and more in fear as the Milotic came closer. Finally, he ran out of the cavern as quickly as his legs and tail could take him, dropping the leaves before Kairi's feet as he ran out. The Milotic had a calm look to her, not upset at all in the slightest as she looked over Kairi head to toe once more, even circling around her once as he fins brushed against her back. "I didn't expect you to be so attractive after a single bath, but it only proves that you are becoming a better servant," she said to Kairi quite calmly, moving her tail to tip Kairi's chin upward, looking at her in the eyes. "Why was that Aipom helping you? Did you order it to do so? Force?"

A blush appeared on Kairi's cheek as she heard the Milotic compliment on her being attractive. It was sort of new to hear her say such a thing, especially considering Kairi was used to the Milotic telling her orders. Her heart welled up even more with joy as she stated that she was becoming a better servant as well. When asked, Kairi responded, "Ordered? Don't be absurd. I asked him to help out and he did so."

Milotic looked over Kairi rather carefully, being sure to look into her eyes with caution. Kairi used to be a trainer before she sealed her memories away, so of course she was skeptical when Kairi said she merely asked the Aipom to help her out. However, her words were completely honest, and her eyes didn't appear as if she was lying. She had no reason to punish Kairi for bringing in an unwanted Pokémon, but did not want them treading around in her cavern as if they owned the place. She very much preferred the peace that she had with just her servant around. "You were not sure, so I will only tell you this once. Never bring outsiders into my cave, unless I command it," she stated to Kairi in a stern manner, draping her tail around Kairi's shoulders once more to make herself more assertive.

Kairi bowed her head downwards lightly, feeling like her mistress was upset with bringing in another Pokémon. "I understand…I had only thought of that when I walked in. Next time, I will be more assertive about it," she said to the Milotic rather calmly. She blinked, seeing the leaves in her arms before holding them up to the Milotic. "Do you think this is enough?" Kairi inquired, noticing that her mistress didn't even look at the leaves.

"How you choose to rest is up to you, as with how many leaves you require. I do not care how comfortable you are, but you must be ready to obey when I tell you," she explained to Kairi in her typical stern style, using her fins to brush Kairi's head of red hair as if she was petting the human. "Be quick. I will need you soon."

Nodding lightly in response, Kairi crouched down to pick up whatever was left of what Aipom carried. Without even speaking, her first response was to go near her mistress' pool of water, hoping that she could be as close to the Milotic as possible during the night.

However, her mistress had a very different response from Kairi's movement towards her pool. She floated calmly towards Kairi, wrapping a coil around Kairi's bare waist. "Hold." She didn't sound upset, but instead she sounded more concerned than anything. "If you must put your bedding near my pool, do it a few steps back. I do not wish for my sleep to be disturbed by your snoring." Of course, the Milotic knew that Kairi didn't snore, as she was very quiet last night upon her scales. But it was in an effort to condition Kairi to think that she had a lot of work to do to become more beautiful.

Kairi blinked, and frowned a bit. She was a bit torn at the fact that her mistress didn't want her sleeping close to her, but also understood what she meant. "Do I really snore?" she asked her mistress in an annoyed little tone, the thought of such a thing happening irking Kairi. She turned on her heels and took several large steps away from the pool, placing the leaves on the ground before spreading them out evenly. She was unaware of her mistress, who was watching her carefully with intrigue to see how Kairi would prepare the bedding for tonight.

"Do you believe that will be enough, Kairi?" her mistress asked her servant calmly, seeing Kairi make a small little pile in the middle. It would be enough to cover herself with a thin layer when she slept.

Nodding lightly, Kairi stood up in the middle of the bedding, placing her hands upon her hips. "That's sure to be enough," she stated like a little kid would. Kairi noticed her mistress moving her coils fully around the bedding, and turned towards her.

"If you believe that this will help you sleep, then so be it," she said to Kairi in a calm voice, continuing with the same tone. "You will soon know what it is to have grace, but you will have to work much harder to prove you are worth of teaching." to prove you are worth of teaching." Training the human servant to become as beautiful as her was a goal that Milotic thought was impossible at first. However, she felt more confident after capturing the human for herself.

There was no chance of Milotic releasing Kairi. If she was released, there was always the chance that Kairi would tell other humans about this place and the forest would be ravaged. The thought of Kairi returning to enslave Pokémon was one that Milotic would never allow. She wrapped a coil around Kairi's waist, asking her sternly, "Now sit before me, and tell me who it is you obey and serve."

With a nod of the head, Kairi sat down before her mistress, resting on her knees and shins as she heard the question. It was redundant, to say the least, for her mistress knew this fully well. "You, mistress! Why do you pose a question like this?"

Feeling insulted by Kairi's remark, she tightened her coils around Kairi as she was quick to anger despite being graceful and beautiful. "Tell your mistress just what you are," she replied to Kairi in a stern tone of voice, loosening her grip just slightly to have Kairi undeterred from stalling.

Her heart sank a bit as she felt the coils tighten up, and Kairi lowered her head lightly. She said something that upset her mistress, and Kairi felt the need to correct whatever it was she said. "I-I am but your humble servant, mistress!"

Milotic could sense that Kairi was attempting to patch up what she had said, and wrapped a coil around Kairi's arms to pin them to her sides. "How long do you wish to serve under me, human?" This would be the final question before she would let go of Kairi and rest up for later.

Kairi couldn't tell if her mistress was being serious or not, as again, it seemed that the answer was obvious with how Kairi behaved since becoming her servant. Hesitating at first, Kairi responded with a small smile appearing on her face, not caring if she was bound by the coils. "I want to be your loyal servant forever, mistress," she said calmly once more, not even thinking about the pros and cons. After all, she had food, a place to sleep, privacy, and best of all, a mistress as beautiful and graceful as her.

Milotic was glad to see that Kairi was willing to serve her forever, and rewarded her human servant with a few licks to her forehead and cheeks. She could feel her servant's feelings of joy from the licks, and unwound the coils from around Kairi. "I no longer need you for the moment, feel free to do whatever you please until I awaken. You would be wise to avoid waking me up from my slumber," she said to Kairi calmly, slipping into the pool of water in near silence before looking back at Kairi with her usual calm expression. "But be aware that we will start your lessons later. Be prepared for that."

Kairi watched her mistress quickly fall into a peaceful sleep, and she found herself lying on the bedding of leaves. As she laid there in silence, Kairi thought about what the dream that morning meant. It was so strange, because the place seemed so familiar, yet it was so foreign as well. What did it mean? Did she really visit the place before, and if she did, what exactly did she do there. Kairi shut her eyes, finding herself a bit tired despite sleeping most of the day as it was. She was prepared to follow her mistress' teachings no matter what; whatever it takes she will become as beautiful and graceful as her mistress. She brushed her hand against her cheek and forehead, remembering the licks her mistress gave her for responding correctly. A smile was seen on her face, pleased to know that her mistress appreciated that she was there for her.

It only seemed like minutes, but Kairi had fallen asleep before her mistress was above her. "…Kairi, wake up. It is time to serve me again, servant." Kairi opened her eyes, seeing the Milotic looking down upon her with a calm look on her face, not unlike most of the time that she speaks to her. As Kairi sat up, letting off a small yawn and stretching her arms, she spoke once again. "Are you ready to begin your lessons of grace?"

As Kairi nodded in response, not uttering a word for the moment, her mistress went and grabbed three berries from the small stockpile they had in a small concave structure. They were the size of apples, each one colored differently. She placed it on the ground before Kairi, and she explained the lesson to her servant. "I will teach you how to be balanced when you move, but you must listen to everything that I tell you. Do you see the berries in front of you?" she asked before pointing to the berries with her fins. "This will be your food for tonight. If you can balance these on your head one at a time, you may have them to eat. If one falls, however, I shall claim it for dinner."

Kairi looked at the berries curiously, before acknowledging the lesson her mistress said. She grabbed a berry, before placing it on her head. "You mean like this?" she inquired, smiling before feeling the berry roll off of her head and onto her bedding.

The Milotic took back the berry, placing it with the others. "I did not tell you to start, and I wasn't finished speaking," she snapped at her a little bit, not refraining from being a bit harsh on Kairi for impudent actions. "If you dare to interrupt me again, you will not be eating anything tonight."

When she was certain that Kairi's attention was fully on her, the Milotic continued with the explanation. "You will walk a full circle around my pool with the berry balancing on your head. If you can do that without the berry falling, you will be able to eat. Do it twice, you can sleep on your mistress' scales."

The Milotic's stare went from calm to a stern, icy look. If one were to see the Milotic's stare firsthand, they would be frozen in intimidation. "However, if you fail to even get a single berry around the pool, not only will you not eat, but your bedding will decorate my pool. Do you understand what I am requesting, Kairi?"

Kairi nodded her head briefly, shivering at the thought of starving and losing her soft bedding as well. She picked up the juiciest looking berry and walked over to her mistress' pool along the edge. "I understand, mistress. I walk around while balancing the berry on my head," she repeated, placing the berry on her head of red hair as she attempted to start the lesson.

Before she could continue, however, the Milotic plucked the berry off of her head and wrapped her tail around her servant's bare hips. "It would not be fair for you if I did not teach you how to balance first." Her tail wound along the human's stomach now. "Hold your arms out to your sides, and place on foot directly in front of the other."

Raising her arms, Kairi looked at her mistress with a curious expression. "Like this, right?" she asked calmly, stepping with one foot in front of the other for a few steps, getting the motions proper. "Would you place the berry on me?"

The Milotic could tell that Kairi was eager to try out her balance, but wanted her servant to learn quickly instead of through trial and error. She considered herself considerate to teach Kairi about being graceful, but thought about letting Kairi drop all of the berries in order to teach her about patience. "Walk in a straight line with one foot always in front of the other. Keep your hands straight out, and never let your palms become uneven with the ground," she explained, watching Kairi take several steps to practice this. She unwound from Kairi and let her do a full circle around the pool, which only took about several minutes. Finally, she placed the berry on Kairi's head, confident in her abilities. "Balancing a berry requires delicate work. A slight tremble will make it fall," she said to Kairi, before receding from her servant to watch with patience and anticipation.

Kairi hesitated, feeling the berry placed on her head finally after a few practice steps. She heard her mistress speak to her as she started to walk, concentrating fully on not letting the berry fall with balance. "Try to relax. Try not to move with sudden movements. With training, you will be able to move like this with agile movements," she explained to Kairi, observing as her servant walked around the pool of water that she called her bed. "Be careful of your confidence, it could be your downfall. You cannot afford to make any mistakes…Good luck."

The Milotic watched Kairi as she carefully walked with the berry, and thought about what it meant to have a human as a servant once more. It was out of self-defense at first, claiming that the human had encroached upon her territory. But now that she had the human for a little over a day, she had noticed that Kairi acted rather differently from other trainers. She wasn't sure if this was because she locked away her memories or if she was always like this, but it struck her as strange when the Aipom obeyed Kairi without any hesitation despite her being a human.

Her thoughts were broken when she noticed Kairi lose her composure about half-way through. The berry fell off of her head, and the Milotic thought she was going to blow up out of frustration at first. What had caused her to lose composure, the Milotic didn't quite know. When Kairi kicked the berry over to her, the water serpent felt insulted. That was no way to act as a servant to her. "You will pick up that berry…and feed it to me…before I punish you for your rudeness," she stated to Kairi in an upset and cold tone of voice, hoping that Kairi would get the idea to not do it again.

Kairi heard her mistress, and her frustration got the better of her. Instead of acting like usual and remaining calm, Kairi walked over to her mistress with an upset look in her eyes that looked angry more than anything. She grabbed the berry from the floor, and said in an abrupt, almost furious voice, "Sorry," as she tried to shove the berry towards her mistress' face.

This only made the Milotic finally snap towards her servant. She slapped the berry out of Kairi's hand and wrapped her tail around Kairi's wrist, squeezing it tightly without any relenting. Kairi should know where her place was between them, the servant who listens and obeys her master, not the servant who speaks in such a way to her. "You dare to speak to your mistress in that tone?! Pick up the berry and feed it to me properly, lest I punish you further!" she shouted in Kairi's head, probably giving her a bad headache at that moment. She released the coil around Kairi's wrist, waiting to see Kairi do it right.

Kairi rubbed her wrist quietly, sniffling lightly as she felt the pain it caused. Her mistress had squeezed so hard that it left a circular bruise on her wrist, and Kairi could feel fear for her mistress for the first time. Kairi gulped, knowing now to never get on her mistress' bad side. In an effort to reconcile her mistakes, Kairi quickly ran over to the berry, grabbed it before coming back towards her mistress. Bowing lightly to her on her knees, she lifted the berry over her head, not wanting to her mistress to see tears streaming down her cheeks. "H-Here is your berry, mistress!" she exclaimed, choking a bit in an effort to not sob or sniffle.

The Milotic could feel Kairi's distress and sadness, and the only thing she could think of at that moment is how Kairi deserved it for her disobedience. She took the berry from Kairi's hands, eating it thoroughly as she thought of a good enough punishment for her servant's behavior. Twice she had angered her mistress, and a punishment good enough appeared in her thoughts. "For making me angry, you will balance two berries on the backs of your hands." She had thought about balancing two berries on her head, but that would nearly be impossible and required a miracle to occur.

"If either berry falls, you shall starve and sleep on the cold, damp floor," she explained to Kairi soundly, scooping the berries up and ready to place them on Kairi's hands. "However, if you can balance both of these berries, you will have the pleasure of not only filling your belly, but sleeping on my scales as well."

Her servant didn't speak at all, instead composing herself once more at the side of the pool. She raised her hands to her sides once more, and the Milotic could tell that Kairi was uneasy about the entire lesson. Perhaps the thought of sleeping on the floor and going hungry was just what Kairi needed for encouragement. Or perhaps it could be the very thing that has Kairi failing away. Either way, the Milotic would be sure to watch with anticipation. "I'm ready," Kairi said to her mistress calmly, shutting her eyes and making sure to keep herself calm this time.

The Milotic placed the berries on Kairi's hands, and didn't utter a word to her as she receded back to give Kairi room. She wouldn't talk or move to break Kairi's concentration, and held her breath to watch Kairi.

Kairi started to walk along once more, her fears rising inside of her as she felt the berries on her hands shift ever so slightly. However, Kairi felt determined to not allow that to happen again, and despite the fact that she knew her arms would probably get tired Kairi did her very best to hold them up as she moved along. Her steps were slower than the previous time, and she took in slow, steady breaths in order to prevent any sporadic movements. It took considerably longer than before, but eventually Kairi reached the mid-point of the route along the pool's edge.

Milotic could feel herself grow bored as she watched Kairi, not realizing how long it would take her to accomplish the task. The more Kairi walked, the more her mistress' eyes were half-open, resting her head on her tail. Although she made a mental note to herself to enforce a time limit on Kairi next time, she realized that Kairi was at the half-way point around her pool. It meant that Kairi showed great promise in becoming beautiful and graceful, and for once the Milotic grew interested in if Kairi would succeed in the task.

Perhaps it was because she was a human, but Milotic strangely felt excited to have her as a servant. It's true that she despised humans with an intense passion, and oddly enough she didn't quite feel the same towards Kairi. She hated her intrusion enough to make her a slave, but again, was it required? Humans did the same to Pokémon, and Milotic made sure to stop any trainers from capturing anything in this forest so it was only natural that she took Kairi as her own servant. As Milotic's thoughts went through her head, shutting her eyes during quite a bit of it, she felt herself becoming rested waiting for Kairi.

The next time she opened her eyes, Kairi was at the same place she was before. At first, the Milotic felt agonized at the thought of her at a standstill. But then the thought struck her. Kairi had actually walked around the pool completely, and even did a little more. She probably wouldn't stop until her mistress said otherwise, and from the looks of it Kairi was so concentrated on the task at hand that she didn't even realize what she had done.

Wanting to play a small joke on her, as Kairi had bored her for nearly an hour, Milotic spoke to her servant.

"…Kairi."

Startled by her mistress' sudden interruption, Kairi found herself shaken. The berries fell to the floor with a small thud, and Kairi's face could showcase the pain she felt when they fell. "No no no!" she cried out, thinking full well that she failed and she would have to endure the punishment. Kairi grasped her head of red hair tightly, falling into her knees as she felt furious at herself for the failure. Her mistress promised all sorts of great things if she succeeded, and now those were nothing more than shattered dreams. Shivering; frustrated, and hungry, Kairi accepted defeat. She had lost, and she dare not make an outburst like before, lest her mistress punishes her even more harshly. Kairi grabbed the berries and walked towards

The Milotic felt a bit torn when Kairi reacted the way she did, but she knew that it would be better when she told Kairi the good news. When Kairi held out the berries towards her, Milotic ate them thoroughly as she draped her tail around Kairi's shoulders in an effort to make her feel a bit better.

"You did your best, my servant. If you fail, get back up and keep getting stronger for your mistress." She could feel Kairi's torn feelings with her empathy, and licked Kairi's forehead lightly to make her feel better once more. "You are trying hard. If you keep trying harder, you will become greater. Remember this, Kairi."

Kairi did her best to hold her composure as her mistress tried to console her, but she couldn't help but have a few tears run down her cheeks as she heard the Milotic speak to her. She wiped her tears away with the back of her hand, not wanting to cry in front of the beautiful serpent. "I-I did my best…" Kairi muttered under her breath, sniffling as she cringed at the thought of sleeping on the cold, harsh floor of the cavern tonight. She was so upset that she didn't even let off a smile when her mistress licked her forehead.

Noticing that all was failing with trying to cheer her up, Milotic nodded silently. "Yes…You did your best," she said to Kairi, letting her tail slip from Kairi's shoulders as she moved towards the small pile of berries they stockpiled. Grabbing two of them, she took them to Kairi, the same color and flavor as the ones she had dropped. "You should eat…Then I will help groom you so you can sleep upon my scales tonight."

Kairi took the berries from her mistress as she handed them to her, confused as she heard her mistress say that she had to be groomed and fed. She failed, did she not? Milotic ate her berries and told her to do better next time, so why was she being congratulated. Kairi looked at the berries for a moment, before looking back up to her mistress. "D-Didn't I fail the task, though?"

In response, the Milotic wrapped her tail around Kairi's bare waist and hips, lifting her up into the air. She could feel Kairi being confused, and explained to her quite thoroughly, "You went around in a complete circle. Not only that, you continued to move even after you finished." The Milotic sensed Kairi's joy welling up inside of her heart, and admittedly the Milotic felt that it was a much better sensation compared to the pain and guilt from before. She licked Kairi's bare chest and on her face a little bit to show her affection.

Kairi let off a wide smile, loving the licks that her mistress gave to her. It just made her feel all nice and fluffy on the inside, particularly when she praised her for going further than she needed to. Needless to say, Kairi was overjoyed at the thought of making her mistress happy. "Thank you so much, Mistress!" she exclaimed, giving her a hug around her neck with her arms. She wanted to sleep with her mistress again, even if it was upon her scales.

The Milotic could feel Kairi's happiness from the news, and as she gave her mistress a hug, she wrapped her neck around Kairi like a hug as well. Having the human girl as a servant was proving to be much more different than she had expected. Her thoughts traveled to other human trainers with their Pokémon, and somehow the Pokémon were happy to be with them. Were they experiencing the same thing?

After they finished their embrace, she set Kairi back on the damp floor of the cavern. "Finish eating your meal. There is still work for you to perform…And one more thing." The Milotic's stare grew colder for a moment, making sure to intimidate Kairi with a threat. "I will be timing you when you perform tomorrow. Do not disappoint me."

Kairi's bare feet pressed against the floor, looking at her mistress with an uneasy glare. Did she bore her mistress too much with her being cautious? A gulp escaped her, and Kairi nodded in acknowledgement. Quickly, she ate the two berries, enjoying their flavors immensely before her mistress spoke once more to her.

"I have one more task for you today before light runs out," she started with Kairi calmly, floating towards the entrance of the cavern with as little effort as possible. As she exited, awaiting Kairi to follow her outside, she finally said what it was she had planned for Kairi. "You will learn how to hunt. Meet me outside when you are ready…"


	5. Chapter IV

Kairi made her way outside the entrance of the cavern. She was impressed by the way the scales of her mistress shimmered with the colors of the rainbow, mainly due to the fact that the afternoon light was angled just precisely in the proper effect. Her mistress spoke to her calmly as they started to move away from the cavern. "You're going to use your strength, or beauty, to help me catch live prey before the sun sets over the horizon. It should be easy for you to do if you listen carefully." The Milotic knew that this was another lesson that Kairi needed to be taught, but was thankful that it also only needed to be taught once. "Now come with me, stay close to your mistress," she told Kairi in a stern tone, yet keeping her composure as she slithered alongside the human servant of hers.

As they walked, the Milotic could tell that Kairi probably had questions about hunting. She didn't know whether or not she damaged part of Kairi's mind when she first captured her as a servant, but either way an explanation was needed to be on the safe side. When Kairi had asked about what hunting was, she explained it to her. "You have to use your strength, or beauty, to help me catch live prey before the sun sets over the horizon. It should be easy for you if you listen to my words precisely," she started, before looking down at the human with a calmed look. "As for what it is, hunting is to trap, capture and eat live prey. In this world, the strong survive by feeding on the weak. It is something that I wish we didn't have to do, but it is necessary to survive," Milotic told Kairi quite nonchalantly, hoping that she got the message. To further her point, she posed a question for the human as they walked. "Do you remember how that Victreebell almost devoured you?"

"Of course, and you were there to save me," Kairi said to the Milotic calmly, wondering why she brought up that terrible memory of almost being eaten alive by the plant. With a look of epiphany coming upon her, Kairi made a small frown at the realization. "So he would have killed me to keep himself alive? Sounds cruel…"

"It is cruel indeed, but you are a bright and smart servant," Milotic mused, feeling somewhat proud to have Kairi as a servant. She could sense what Kairi was feeling towards her, being a sense of happiness from learning from her dearest mistress. She would do what she needed to keep the human servant under her control, and also happy. "If I was not there to save you, the Victreebell would have consumed your entire body and leave nothing behind." Milotic looked down for a moment, noticing small paw prints going along in a path. They were on the right track, and Milotic knew this. Looking back at Kairi as she started to follow the path, the calm look never left her face. "I would never devour my loyal servants, but you do have a satisfying taste. Remember that well."

The last statement was both unnerving and confusing to Kairi as she walked, her bare feet pressing into the forest soil. She fell silent, instead starting to admire how the forest looked now that she was actually getting a good look. The sunlight shone through the leaves, creating an emerald hue that shrouded the two of them, along with casting shadows due to being in the late afternoon. The human made sure to travel lightly, just in case any 'prey' decided to show up. Admittedly, Kairi thought this was just an exercise and not an actual hunt. There was no way that Kairi would eat a live Pokémon. The thought was absurd and silly at the same time. As they turned, there was the sound of a small group playing, and her mistress stopped Kairi from proceeding by pressing her fins against Kairi's chest.

Kairi stood on the tips of her toes to look at who it was that her mistress had spotted. A small smile formed on her face as she saw that it was a group of Buneary playing with each other, eating berries with each other as they managed to find a spot that was safe from predators (or so they thought). It was a peaceful, and fun, scene to observe from afar.

The Milotic spoke to her once again, though. She saw things differently in her perception. This group of Buneary were unprepared, willing to risk safety for play time. They would pay the consequence of this. She knew that these would be an easy target for Kairi to practice her hunting on. Scanning the area, she made sure that the Buneary were not protected. "Do you see them, Kairi? Those are Buneary, a weak Pokémon. Before sunset, you must capture one and bring it to me." She looked at Kairi, turning and circling around her as she knew that they wouldn't be seen from where they were. "Would you like me to tell you how to capture them?"

Kairi nodded, watching the Buneary run about and play with one another. It was strange, there was something about them that made her curious, wondering if she had seen them before. Nonetheless, her mistress had told her to hunt them, and she would oblige. She stood by a tree, pressing her shoulder against it to keep herself hidden. "What did you have in mind, mistress?" she asked the Milotic curiously, wanting to know what the water-type had in mind for today.

Observing the situation briefly, Milotic had come to a decision in a manner of seconds. She didn't want to give Kairi all of the answers, but instead wanted to see how Kairi would do on her own for once. "Try to lure one away from the group. If you walk up to them, they will scatter and run for help, and we will all go hungry for tonight. Once you have one ensnared, you will need to capture it, dead or alive, and bring it to me."

Nodding silently in response, Kairi didn't want to disappoint her mistress. However, at the mention of bringing it to her dead or alive, there was a small pang of fear that crossed Kairi's heart. She did her best to hide it, putting on a smile and making sure that her mistress didn't see any change in behavior. "Lure one away? How do I do that?" she inquired towards the water-type. The thought about the Aipom earlier crossed her mind, about how he wanted to snuggle up to her after taking a berry bath.

Slowly, her mistress placed her fins against Kairi's bare stomach. "Use bait, Kairi. Try to use your beauty to lure the creature out, or give it something you know it wants. Many creatures enjoy food, do they not?" Although she was patient with Kairi for the most part, thinking that she still had a lot to learn, she felt that Kairi needed to learn more on her own than being told on what to do by the Milotic all of the time.

Kairi watched as her mistress receded away to a more secluded area, hearing a sound, "I'll be awaiting your arrival," before the Milotic seemed to disappear into the foliage. She wondered what she had to do, having a general idea but somewhat confused by what she had to do as well. Stepping forward, she was unsure whether or not she would be seen by the Buneary. Kairi looked around the trees to see if there was anything sweet that she could give to the Buneary in order to gain their trust.

As the Buneary cluster played and talked to one another, having a fellow good time with each other, one of them turned around to look behind the group. Her eyes widened as she saw the nude human with red hair, appearing as if she was looking for some berries of her own. The small Buneary looked back at the group, making a motion as if saying she'll be back (it was unknown if they heard her or not). She walked towards the human, wondering if she could talk at all.

'What should I do?' she thought to herself in a stern silence, wondering what exactly she should do as the Buneary approached her. Kairi started to look around once more for any berries, debating if she should give it food or not.

The Buneary looked up to Kairi briefly, putting a paw to its mouth as it wondered what the human was doing here. It had never before seen one like Kairi, who hadn't even a small piece of clothing to wear. It was a bit strange, but the Buneary didn't mind that aspect. What it wondered was why Kairi was here in the first place.

Finally, Kairi sighed, seeing that the Buneary was close enough to her. Crouching down, Kairi made a small smile. "Hey there…" Kairi said quietly, outstretching her hands past the Buneary, debating on picking it up or not.

Shifting its head to the side, the Buneary looked as Kairi outstretched her hands past it. It seemed a bit confused by the gesture, wondering what she wanted from the Buneary. Then, the only logical conclusion came from it. This human wanted a hug! The Buneary ran up to Kairi, its arms outstretched as it hugged Kairi while resting its head against Kairi's soft skin. The small normal-type seemed quite complacent with the hug, particularly because she seemed quite nice.

Hugging the Buneary for a moment, Kairi appreciated the fact that she seemed to not see her as a threat. Nuzzling the normal-type for a second, Kairi found her stomach growling a little bit. Noticing the curious expression the Buneary had at that second, she questioned it briefly. "Would you like something to eat?" Her heart felt light and fluffy again, just like how it felt when the Aipom helped her with carrying leaves back into the cavern.

The Buneary seemed to pause, letting go of the human as it put a paw to its chin. There was a sense of curiosity seen inside of its brown eyes, and understanding what Kairi was trying to ask it made a small nod of the head. A smile formed, and it seemed quite happy. It also seemed willing to follow Kairi wherever she went with the idea of berries forming in her head.

"Alright, just wait here." Kairi stood up, her eyes glancing at the low-hanging branches in an effort to find some delicious berries. Her eyes caught two in particular that looked ripe for the picking, and made it her goal to get them. They were well out of reach for the Buneary, but just in reach for Kairi's arm-length. Standing on the tips of her toes, digging into the soft forest floor, Kairi grabbed the two berries with both of her hands.

A smile forming on her face, she crouched back down to the Buneary's position. Placing the berries on the ground before the small Pokemon, Kairi wanted it to choose first. "There's a red one and a blue one. You pick first!" she told the Buneary, the thought of hunting it sitting on the back burner at that moment. The only thing Kairi had on her mind during that instant was making the Buneary happy, contrary to what her mistress desired.

Hesitating, the Buneary looked at the two berries, considering both as it was so rare for someone to help it out with berry picking. However, it knew that blue generally tasted sweeter, so it took that instead. As the Buneary bit into it, enjoying the juicy flavor it contained, it couldn't help but move closer to Kairi. Even though it knew that most humans couldn't be trusted, something in her said that Kairi could be, despite the true intention Kairi was here for.

Kairi moved her hand as she stroked the Buneary's ears, feeling that they were so soft to the touch. It looked so happy to have a berry to eat, and Kairi could feel herself becoming more comfortable around it. However, as she pet, the realization struck her. The thought of Victreebell trying to devour her crossed her mind, and the thought of Milotic doing the same thing to this Buneary…No! Kairi felt herself grow cold, almost chilled to the bone. If she brought the Buneary back, the Buneary would surely not survive…Her hand stroked the soft fur, and tears started to form in her eyes. 'N-No Kairi, you mustn't cry,' she thought to herself, trying to keep herself from sobbing for the Buneary's sake.

As it ate, the Buneary looked up at Kairi to thank her for grabbing the berries. But, when it noticed that Kairi was becoming sad, it made a small cry of worry. It stepped onto Kairi's thigh and patted the human on the cheek, becoming worried that it made Kairi upset by something that it had done.

'Is it really worth it? This Buneary has a family, and is worried for me, even as I cry it is worried. What would I gain in snuffing it out?' Kairi thought to herself, becoming more and more distressed with each passing second. She patted the Buneary's back, before giving off a light smile, in an attempt to calm them both down. "I-It'll be alright, Buneary…" she muttered out, hugging it close as Kairi couldn't bring herself to let the Buneary get harmed.

As this happened, the Milotic, who was always close by, saw that Kairi was becoming distressed, with tears rolling down her cheeks. It looked as if Kairi was going to protect the Pokemon, which baffled her. Kairi was formerly a trainer! Someone who used Pokemon to hurt others for sport. Before Kairi's memories were locked away, she used to do the same; so why was she protecting this Buneary?

She recalled foiling the battling plans of many trainers who traveled through her territory, frightening them off before they could continue any further. But Kairi was not like them…Perhaps all humans were not as evil as she had initially thought.

The Milotic whispered to Kairi through telepathy, hoping that Kairi would be more comforted by her than by other means. "There is no need to cry, my servant. You are stronger than it, and the strong survive on the weak. You must understand this, if you hope to continue being my servant."

Kairi hiccupped, feeling that her mistress was right through all of this. Turning towards where the Milotic had been, she looked down at the Buneary, conflicted that this Pokémon had to be sacrificed, all while not wanting it to be so. As the Buneary raised a paw towards Kairi, confused as to why the human had been crying a bit, Kairi had a weak smile appear on her face. "I want you to know that…I'm sorry for what happens next," she said to the Pokémon, who became further confused by her actions.

As she watched her servant walk through the foliage towards her, the Milotic was pleased that Kairi had brought a decent meal for her for once. She saw that Kairi had been crying a little, enough to where it was noticeable, and it made even the Milotic a tad upset. She could understand why Kairi would have a difficult time in letting the Buneary become her meal, especially with not having it put up a fright in return. However, Kairi had to make tough decisions sometimes; that was part of life. As the two of them came into the small clearing, the Milotic let off a calming aura to attempt to make her servant clear-minded.

Succeeding, Kairi's nerves and crying ceased, having the human girl wiping her eyes a bit with her free hand. However, it did not result in complacency. "P-Please don't do this, I beg of you…" she said to her mistress, looking at her with a look of worry and fear spreading across her face.

Annoyed with Kairi's incessant whining over the Buneary's safety, she motioned for the two of them to look at her directly. Once they did so, she let off her hypnotic prowess over the two of them, soothing invisible rays washing over them. The Buneary, who had felt distressed from Kairi's actions, quickly fell into a peaceful sleep within Kairi's arms. Kairi, who fell underneath the ability swiftly due to her emotional stress, fell silent. The Milotic came closer, and woke Kairi out of her trance with a light slap along her cheek with her fins.

"I commanded you to catch a Buneary. Are you not happy with how you appear? Or that the Buneary was lured by your beauty? You did well with capturing one for your mistress, but would you be willing to protect it from the inevitable death? If you choose to keep protecting it and opposing my wishes, it will make you weaker."

Calm now, and finally having clarity, Kairi looked down at the Buneary in her arms. "But mistress, I may have gone into the hunt with the intentions to capture one for you. But there's no reason that we should have to do this. This Pokémon trusts me; we ate berries together just now. You expect me to betray this Pokémon…?" Feeling herself getting a little teary-eyed once more, Kairi rubbed them away. "I-I can't betray this Pokémon…It just doesn't feel right."

The Milotic sighed, not wishing to watch Kairi acting this upset over a small Buneary. In the grand scheme of things, it did not matter, for there were at least eight other Bunearys in the pack. In an attempt to persuade her servant in giving the Buneary up, she wrapped her tail around Kairi's hips and waist, squeezing it lightly to provide comfort for the human. She spoke in a calm voice, knowing that Kairi would listen if she didn't raise her voice. "It is no different than trapping it, and it is much kinder to allow this to happen instead of hurting it while it is still alive."

Pausing, the Milotic took a moment to bind Kairi's legs together, about to ask something that would test Kairi's loyalty to her over the Buneary. "If you had the choice of letting yourself or this Buneary live, which do you think would be the wisest choice for yourself?" The Milotic's look hadn't changed from a calm, gentle one, so such a question seemed to be contradictory to her apparent mood.

Kairi froze, the question seeming to pierce her heart. Two possibilities crossed her mind. The first possibility was that, if she gave the Buneary over to her mistress, she could continue serving her and learning how to become the most beautiful servant this forest would have ever seen. However, this meant that Kairi would have to live with the guilt of the decision.

If Kairi sacrificed herself for the Buneary, there wouldn't have to be any suffering between the family, for they would all be together and happy. However, this also meant that the Buneary would be confused and heartbroken when Kairi wouldn't be there to share berries with her.

"I…I don't know," Kairi stammered, trembling in fear as the truth came out of her. "Mistress, w-what should I do?"

This was getting tedious to the Milotic. She hated that Kairi had become so indecisive so suddenly, and didn't care for going on any further through the week without meat in her diet. The Milotic was tempted to simply pluck the Buneary and eat it from Kairi's arms, forcing Kairi to forget afterwards. This also meant the same thing would happen if Kairi went hunting again.

"What should I do?" Shaking her head, the Milotic looked at Kairi, hoping that her servant would decide once and for all. Having a strong feeling Kairi would keep being indecisive, there was only one course of action remaining; to threaten Kairi to give up the Buneary. Otherwise they would go at this banter for another hour.

"Are you saying that you would fail your mistress at your first hunt? Would you like to keep that guilt on your heart for as long as you live?" Seeing that Kairi finally seemed to form a though process, she continued on. "You have two choices, my servant." Lifting herself, and Kairi, off of the ground by a meter, the Milotic's face came close to Kairi's, intimidating her servant.

"If you prove that you are strong and give up the Buneary, I will allow you the pleasure to sleep upon my scales for another night. However, if you keep refusing to give it up, I will gladly take you in place of your friend. The world is better off with fewer humans, so your death would mean nothing to me." At that last statement, even the Milotic seemed to have a pang inside of her heart at such a threat. While what she said was true about the world being better off without humans, it would still pain her to see Kairi disappear to an extent.

As Kairi was set back down onto the ground, the tail unraveling from her body, she gulped, the threat of death being a great motivator to give up the Buneary. "A-Alright, I'll be strong…" she said, seeing her mistress pull her fins up towards Kairi. Shutting her eyes, and taking a deep breath, Kairi let go of the Buneary, placing it gently onto her mistress's fins. At that moment, Kairi almost couldn't bear to have the thought of giving up the Buneary to the Milotic. Was she really going to be that cold-hearted and allow this to happen? But if she didn't, her mistress would devour her instead, a thought that terrified Kairi to her core.

"You made a wise choice." The Milotic raveled her tail around the Buneary, seeing that it let off a yawn and felt so comfortable. As she looked over at Kairi, a smile formed on her face, appearing genuinely pleased with Kairi. However, she did not want Kairi to go through any more mental anguish. "If it pains you to watch, feel free to close your eyes. This one will feel no pain, I promise you that." She looked down at the Buneary, knowing that she had plucked several from their nests before, something that the Milotic had done out of instinct and not spite towards them. The Buneary knew that their demise could come at any moment, so she didn't understand why Kairi felt so attached to it so quickly.

Complying with her mistress, Kairi proceeded to sit down at the base of a tree, crossing her legs as she looked down, her eyes shut in an attempt to avoid the sight. Why did it have to come down to this? She tried so hard to convince her mistress otherwise, and yet here she was, unable to even watch as her mistress was going to eat it.

A minute passed, and a shadow loomed over Kairi. She could feel the scales running underneath her, lightly picking her up as it wound around her stomach. Then, something soft and furry landed on her lap. When Kairi opened her eyes, she saw the Buneary, still sleeping, secure on her lap. Looking up at her mistress, Kairi was confused. Why would her mistress back out of her initial plan?

Annoyed, the Milotic was sure that Kairi would rejoice at this. However, that meant that she would have to go without meat for a while longer, something that she may get herself while Kairi is away sometime. "You will have to work harder to repay me for this favor. I will not grant you favors so easily the next time around, understand?"

"I understand, mistress." Kairi made a smile, happy to know that neither of them would have to suffer from a decision. It was then that she noticed her mistress having a beaming look, as if an idea came to mind. "Mistress?"

"Eggs. Two well-sized eggs for your mistress." The Milotic felt pleased that Kairi wouldn't have to cry anymore because of the Buneary, and already her mind was processing what could be next. "You seem to get easily attached, so I will have you find me two well-sized eggs, or a lot of smaller eggs."

Noticing Kairi seemingly confused by the mention of eggs (the Milotic was willing to teach her what she forgot), she unwound from Kairi and used her tail to sketch an oval shape on the soil. "Eggs are what Pokémon make when they want to have children. They are not actual Pokémon, so you need not worry about their safety," she explained to her servant, hoping that this would be a good work around.

"Alright, where can I find some eggs?" Kairi inquired to her mistress, picking up the Buneary into her arms once more as she stood upon her bare feet. A smile formed on her face, hoping that she could be still able to sleep on her scales once more.

"You can find them in nests all around the forest. You should have no trouble at all in finding eggs," Milotic told Kairi, giving her a reassuring look, having faith that she can complete the task at hand without questioning her any further. "Bring the eggs back to the cave when you have gathered what you deem enough," she said, just about to leave Kairi to do her task while she looked around to make sure no humans were out capturing or fighting Pokémon. Before she left, she spoke to Kairi one last time. "Also, bring your friend back to their family…Before I change my mind. Understood?"

Nodding in agreement, Kairi stood firm in front of her mistress. "Understood, mistress…" Pausing, she made a small bow. "Thank you for your kindness."

Her mistress, not responding to the thank you, slithered off towards the opposite direction. She wished that she could take back promises sometimes, especially when it meant sacrificing a meal. However, she was above such demeaning behavior. Breaking words for personal means meant that she would be no better than a Serperior.

Not wanting to wait around any longer, Kairi turned her back to her mistress and quickly made her way through the foliage. The Buneary had been sound asleep, and Kairi noticed that the others were playing and acting as if the one she held hadn't even gone missing. Perhaps they weren't aware of what had almost happened to their friend.

Looking down once more at the Buneary in her grasp, Kairi stepped out of the foliage, getting the attention of the small group of Pokémon. Some of them looked at Kairi with intrigue, curious towards the beautiful human. Others acknowledged the fact that Kairi had the Buneary in her arms, wondering if she had done something to harm it.

With a smile, Kairi crouched down to their level, setting the Buneary she held down onto the ground. "I'm sorry if I worried you guys, I didn't mean to do such a thing," she said to all of them, watching as the Buneary stirred from her sleep. Blinking, it saw all of its friends rejoicing at its arrival, giving the normal-type hugs and pressing their ears against each other.

While Kairi stood back up, she let off a sigh of relief, knowing that all of these Pokemon will be safe. She felt some of the Buneary group hug her legs, and Kairi couldn't help but feel flattered that they seemed so attracted to her. Taking a minute out of her time to pet them, Kairi let off a chuckle towards all of them. "I'm sorry, but I have to get going. I'll see you guys later!" she exclaimed, stepping above the Buneary as Kairi made sure to not hurt any of them on her way out.

Looking back, she saw all of them wave, with the one she dropped off barely awake. Kairi felt pleased to know that the Buneary had been spared, but as she returned to the task at hand another thought crossed her mind. Why had her mistress given in to Kairi's reasoning? She would never do that any other time, so why did she? That alone baffled Kairi, but nonetheless she was happy with these turn of events.

Not only that, but what did a nest look like? Kairi's thoughts went back to what her mistress had said earlier about eggs. Scratching her chin, Kairi muttered to herself, "If I knew what one looked like…" Glancing up, a sight caught her eye, something that she hadn't noticed in the trees where she plucked the berries from. A woven basket-like item was still on a branch further up, and Kairi had a thought strike her. Could that be the nest her mistress spoke of?

Walking up to the base of the tree, Kairi evaluated the branches, making sure that there were no Pokemon around that could potentially harm her. Seeing no Victreebell or any other Pokemon around, Kairi stood on the tips of her toes, stretching her arms above her as she saw the branch just a mere few centimeters out of her reach. Springing up, she pulled herself up along the branch, her arms still sore from the previous two days. However, Kairi endured through it for the sole purpose of pleasing her mistress.

As Kairi scaled the tree, making sure that she didn't take a misstep and fall, she had been unaware of a pair of eyes watching her. It sought out to protect its nest from any intruders, and this human was no exception. Once Kairi came close to the nest, it swooped down at her, revealing itself to be a Swellow.

Taken by surprise from the Swellow, Kairi fell down a branch or two, getting a grip on the branch by sheer luck. The bird Pokemon chirped and made a lot of hectic noises, pecking at Kairi here and there to make sure that its nest was protected. Kairi let off a few cries, and swung her arm about to make the Swellow go away. Unable to both concentrate on keeping the Swellow away and trying to keep herself up, it seemed to dwindle down to one option; to fall down the tree and start over with a different nest. But Kairi was so close! She could see the nest just a few meters above her head.

As the Swellow pecked away at Kairi, making sure that she would fall off of the tree, an odd event occurred that none of them could explain. As Kairi tried to keep her grip, there was a whizzing sound, and zooming past Kairi was a small blue sphere, seemingly made of flames that disappeared. The Swellow flew upwards in a panic, realizing that it had nearly been defeated by this sphere. Chirping in alarm, it looked around before noticing something nearby before flying off away from the nest.

Finally pulling herself up, feeling ragged from the sudden onslaught of pecks, Kairi blinked as she noticed a figure on a nearby branch. With her naked eye, she made out a canine-like creature that stood on its two hind legs, noticing the very faint blue glow around the figure before it leaped off of the branch. Kairi hoisted herself up a little more to attempt to get a better view of who it was, but they vanished.

"What on earth was that?" Kairi asked herself, appearing in awe of such a sight, even if it was a small glance that she noticed. Shaking her head, Kairi needed to focus on the task at hand. Going up to the nest, she was eager to find twelve medium-sized eggs, which was more than enough for her mistress.

As Kairi returned to the cavern, her mistress had returned after realizing that there were no other humans around. The cool air was something that Kairi had been getting used to, and it was actually quite a nice change from the surprisingly subtropical forest that was in this area. "Mistress, I'm back!" she exclaimed, seeing the Milotic appear pleased at her arrival, particularly with her haul of eggs.

Perking up from her pool of water, the Milotic made a smile towards Kairi. "Ah, I see that you got quite a bit of eggs for the two of us." Slipping out of the water, she prodded Kairi's stomach lightly with her fins. "My servant also needs to get more nourishment than from berries alone. Put the eggs into the water, and stand back." Watching Kairi do just that, the Milotic took in a deep breath, feeling a heat welling up inside of her. After a minute of preparation, she let off a hot spray of water, blisteringly hot enough to cause steam to rise from the heat, making the water beyond boiling. The eggs would surely be cooked in a manner of a few minutes.

As her stream of water ceased, she looked at Kairi with a curious look. "I'm assuming that you had no problems with getting these eggs?" she inquired to her servant curiously, hoping that no Pokemon had attempted to harm her during this task.

Kairi paused, debating on whether or not she should say something to mention the strange thing that had happened earlier. Shifting her feet a little bit, Kairi decided on telling her mistress all that happened. "Well, a Swellow attacked me to defend its nest." Seeing her mistress nod, muttering something to herself, Kairi wondered how she would take the extra set of news she had in store. "I would have fallen from the tree, and maybe have broken something, if it wasn't for a Pokemon who helped me."

"Is it the Aipom from earlier? I didn't think he would be so reliable," Milotic said calmly, letting off a small chuckle to herself as she hid her mouth from Kairi with her fins.

"No, it wasn't him." Kairi was a bit surprised that she made a joke, indicating that she was in a good mood at that time. "No, it was someone who shot a blue ball of energy at the Swellow. They scared the Swellow off, and that's how I was able to get the eggs."

The Milotic paused, and gave Kairi a cautious look. "A Pokemon that is able to shoot a blue ball of energy, you say?" Her mood had changed from a jolly one to suddenly stern, oddly enough. "What did he look like, if you managed to get a good glimpse?"

Twiddling her thumbs, Kairi managed to make a weak smile. "I didn't get to see anything clearly. But, I think they stood on two feet, sort of…different looking, I guess you could say." In an effort to clarify what she had seen, Kairi placed her hands on the back of her head, trying to mimic ears. "He had ears that stuck up like this, but that's all I could really remember…"

The Milotic watched Kairi carefully, determining if what she said was true. Her servant wouldn't lie to her, especially if it meant that he had returned. But, there wasn't any way to prove it; after all, it could have been another Pokemon. "I see…" Returning to her pool of water, she dipped her fins into the scalding water, unaffected by it, as she took the dozen eggs and placed them gently on the ground. She honestly would have asked Kairi to get the eggs, but knew that Kairi would find it far too hot for her comfort. It would ruin the progress she had been trying to make on Kairi's skin as well.

"Crack the shells of the eggs. Use your hands, for they are fragile," she said to Kairi, watching her human servant quickly sit down in front of the dozen eggs. The Milotic watched carefully as Kairi fiddled with the eggs for a moment, noticing that each egg was fifteen centimeters tall. She could easily eat them all herself, but desired Kairi to have her fill.

After a few minutes, Kairi cracked the eggshells, leaving the pieces on the floor as it revealed a hard-boiled egg. Fascinated by it, Kairi made quick work of the rest of them, watching her mistress eat them one by one until six eggs remained. "Do you want the rest, mistress?" she asked curiously, wondering why she left the rest open.

Swallowing down the last egg, the Milotic was satiated with this small change of diet. Shaking her head, she told Kairi calmly, "No, you have your fill first. I will have whatever you cannot finish." Seeing Kairi acknowledge this, she proceeded to slither over to the pool of water, mixing some fresh, icy-cold water into it, dipping her tail into it on occasion to make sure that it was neither too hot nor cold. "When you are done eating, please come into the water. I must bathe you before letting you touch my scales."

Nodding, Kairi had a small, pink blush on her cheeks at the thought of sleeping on her mistress's scales. It was an honor to be a servant to such a beautiful Pokemon, and even more so to have done so well in order to sleep on her scales once more. As Kairi ate the eggs, her stomach only seemed to allow five, which the Milotic was glad to eat the last one. As she witnessed her mistress acting in a good mood, Kairi felt the need to bow her head a little bit towards her. "I…I want to apologize for my behavior earlier with the hunt. I know it would have been easier to eat the Buneary, but I don't know what stopped me."

Eating the egg, the Milotic listened to Kairi as she moved back towards the pool of water. Even if Kairi refused her outright, she couldn't blame the human girl to have a heart to care for the Buneary. It was something that she honestly didn't expect Kairi to display, especially considering she was a former trainer herself. Could it be that not all humans are like the ones that she saw firsthand? The thought was pushed back to her mind for the time being, feeling that now was not the time to ask herself such questions. Inviting Kairi to the pool of water, feeling that it was comfortable enough for her skin, the Milotic made a light smile towards her servant. "Do not worry over such petty things. Please, come into the pool and relax. Tension is not befitting of one who aims to be beautiful."

Complacent with her mistress's suggestion, Kairi was quick to slip into the pool of water, the warmth of the water overtaking the cool of the air with ease. A sigh of relief escaped Kairi, who felt that this was so relaxing, enough to where her body slipped further in, to the point where her chin touched the water. "This feels really nice, mistress," she mused to the Milotic, making a small splash as she raised her feet above the water for a brief moment, making sure that nothing was dirty.

Slipping into the pool of water herself, Milotic made a light smile as she saw Kairi relaxing in the water with glee. Wanting to help Kairi make herself as clean as possible, she used her fins to drench Kairi's head with the water, proceeding to use them to scrub Kairi's back clean of any dirt that she may have had. She was certain to not scrub too hard, for it would harm Kairi's skin that she had been trying so hard to make it perfect. "Are you enjoying this?" she inquired, seeing Kairi nod in silence.

Moving the scales up and down Kairi's naked body, the Milotic was certain to make sure no spot was untouched, even in spots that Kairi wouldn't mind being cleaned. "I hate to see my scales sullied by dirt, but I would also hate to see your skin tainted as well," she stated, scrubbing down all the way to Kairi's feet.

A thought crossed the Milotic's mind, and she looked at her servant curiously. Perhaps an additional reward would be given to her after going through so much trouble to get the eggs. After the scrubbing had finished, she inquired to the human girl, "Is there anything fun you want to do, Kairi? With your mistress?"

Blinking, Kairi found it strange that her mistress had asked if there was anything she wanted to do. It wasn't normally like her to ask something like this. However, Kairi had no complaints, since this was a welcome change to see. "Maybe a massage, mistress? Falling down the tree a little really hurt," she explained to the Milotic, who nodded towards Kairi.

"Where would you want it?" she asked Kairi curiously, who looked as if she was wondering why the sudden change of attitude. Seeing Kairi motion towards her shoulders and legs, the Milotic saw no harm in her request. The more relaxed her muscles were, the better she would be when it came to making her look more beautiful. Wrapping her tail around Kairi's shoulders, then proceeding to wrap the coils further down Kairi's body until it was just underneath her chest. Making soothing, pulsating motions, she made sure that Kairi eased up in her grasp. "Does this work?"

Nodding, Kairi shut her eyes and had a blush appear on her face once more. Indeed, she felt as if she entered a nirvana, with the perfect temperature for the water and having a wonderful massage by her mistress. "T-This is wonderful…T-Thank you, mistress," she said quietly, making herself even more comfortable in her scales.

With a content look in her eyes, the Milotic decided to give something to Kairi that would not only make her happy but also clarify just how exactly the berry mixture had been coming along. Lifting Kairi out of the water a little bit, she proceeded to lick her servant's stomach, hearing a few giggles come out of Kairi at this.

As this had been occurring, a figure approached the cavern, something that they had looked forward to for quite some time now. Catch up with a good friend of theirs, and perhaps spend the night here considering that the day had given way to the early night. At first, they thought that something was amiss considering they could hear Kairi giggling and acting gleeful. However, when they came to the entrance, it was clear that something new had developed. 'This is her cave…But why do I hear a human within?' they thought to themselves, never before hearing of such a thing in this subtropical forest. Without any hesitation, they entered.

Being able to speak to Kairi through telepathy had many benefits, from easier manipulations of her mind among various others, but it also gave the benefit of being able to sense how Kairi had been feeling. As her tongue lapped away at Kairi's stomach, the Milotic knew for a fact that Kairi was ecstatic to be here. Along with making Kairi happy, she found that humans had an interesting taste. It was a significant difference in taste than the first time they met, even if it was a short time span.

As they enjoyed this time together, footsteps were heard, something that Milotic hadn't heard. Finally, a voice through telepathy spoke to the two of them, making their presence known. A masculine voice it was, something that the Milotic hadn't heard for such a long time. "So, I take it that you like to entertain guests, Graceful One."

Looking up, ceasing her session, she let Kairi slip out of her coils, the human servant hidden from the creature. "Ah, I heard the rumors but I did not expect them to be true." With a heart-warming smile, she greeted the Pokemon, who stood underneath the dim moonlight that shone through the hole in the ceiling of the cavern. This was no other than a Lucario. "Welcome back to this part of the forest, Fierce One."


	6. Chapter V

The Lucario made a respectful bow towards the Milotic, knowing that she disliked it when he intruded on her personal affairs. "It has been a while indeed, Graceful One." Looking at her curiously, he could sense the presence of another being in this room, wondering if his suspicions were true. "Are you the only one here? I may have heard…something in here, unless my ears are deceiving me."

Looking down at Kairi, who had partially submerged herself out of shyness, the Milotic made a small nod. Wrapping her tail around Kairi, making sure she had a secure grip, she pulled her human servant from the warm waters. Kairi gave her mistress a worried look, but became a bit more reassured when the Milotic told her not to worry.

The Lucario blinked, glancing away for a moment, for he had never seen a human without clothes on before. It was an unusual sight to say the least, and Lucario wasn't one to judge. "A human?" he asked the Milotic, wondering why she would have one under her roof, so to speak. "When did you begin adopting humans? Were they too much of a hassle on their own?" When he took a look at the Graceful One's servant, his eyes widened, realizing that it was the same girl that he had helped out earlier when

Appearing stern with her decision, the Milotic said to him, "She is my loyal servant, and obeys my commands willingly." Setting Kairi's feet down onto the ground, she uncoiled from her servant, showing her in plain view of the Lucario. "Kairi, please introduce yourself to our guest." Looking at the Fierce One, the Milotic grew curious as to why he was here of all times.

Nodding, Kairi bowed out of respect towards the Lucario. "M-My name is Kairi," she said to him, sounding intimidated by his appearance. Looking up at him, she tried to put on a smile, while at the same time wanted to jump back into the water to hide as well. It was then that Kairi took notice that this was, in fact, the same Pokemon that had helped her out earlier that day as well. Oh how ironic it was for them to meet face to face without knowing each other until now.

Stepping towards Kairi, Lucario did his best to avoid appearing intimidating to her. He noticed that they were roughly about the same height, and judging from the way her skin and hair were colored it was clear that the Milotic was attempting to make her beautiful. He could tell that she was unsteady from his appearance, and decided it proper to give an introduction as well. "I am a Lucario, but I have no name," he said to Kairi, his voice a bit calmer this time around.

A splash sounded, and both of their attention was drawn to the Milotic, who seemed pleased to know that they were all acquainted now. The Lucario gave a curious look, and inquired to his friend. "This is unusual of you to adopt a human. But this is no matter of mine."

Acknowledging the bizarre nature of this meeting, Milotic looked over at Kairi once more. Seeing her servant shivering a bit from the cold air, she said to Kairi, "Kairi, please come back into the water. It is warmer in here." Within a few seconds, Kairi quickly slipped back into the waters, relieved from having to deal with the chilly cavern air. Looking up to the Lucario, she motioned for him to come in as well. "You can join us as well. You are always welcome in my waters."

With a shrug, the Lucario felt no reason to avoid the waters of his good friend. After all, she knew exactly how he enjoyed the water. Stepping into the water, he sat down easily and saw the Graceful One wrap her coils around Kairi's shoulders and chest once more, resuming her massage. "So what brings you out to this part of the forest, Fierce One? The last time we met you left shortly afterwards, so it's surprising to see that you are back after so long."

His focus was ascertained on the human girl within his friend's scales, questions forming in his mind about what happened. Did a human willingly bow down to his friend out of their own free will? No, that was implausible, considering they were stripped nude as well. His thoughts trailed off before he put his attention towards his friend. "I happened to sense your presence nearby. You are hard to track sometimes," he said to her casually, making a sigh after a moment of hesitation. "Although, to be honest, I had been spying on your servant."

"Spying? Fierce one, I thought you were above espionage." Of course joking, she let off a chuckle, not ceasing her massage for Kairi's shoulders. Slowly the massage transitioned from her shoulders and down to Kairi's stomach, where she mentioned that her thighs were a tad sore from earlier.

"I am above espionage, Graceful One. I would never spy on her if I knew that she was with you." The Lucario gave an appearance that was sort of a mix of relief and cautiousness. "Now that I know that this human is with you, I have no reason to spy. Fortunately, she is the only human that I've seen in this forest for the last day or two."

With a sigh of relief, the Milotic found herself having a weight pulled off of her chest. "That is good to hear." A few more minutes passed, and the Milotic could feel Kairi's muscles become relaxed. Letting Kairi go, the human servant slipped into the water, letting off a small yawn. An idea came over the Milotic, and she nudged Kairi a little bit. "Kairi. Why don't you help our guest relax with a massage? He must surely be tense after going around the forest for so long."

Hearing this, Lucario put up his paws in front of him, politely denying the request. "I-I'm fine, I assure you." He took one look at Kairi, who seemed to ask her mistress what she should do in this scenario, and felt pity that she honestly had no idea what to do if someone denied a request. After a moments of murmuring between each other, he sighed. "Alright, but only because your mistress allows it."

Nodding, Kairi shifted through the water momentarily, still shy towards the Lucario. "T-Thank you," she muttered to him, having him sift through the water a little bit to get a good angle at his back. Even though Kairi wasn't quite sure how to do a massage, a strange thought in her head told her that she already knew how to do this. Looking at him curiously, she positioned herself behind him, and a smile formed on her face. "H-How would you like a massage?"

Seeing Kairi's shyness, along with her willingness to give him a massage, the Lucario couldn't help but be charmed. With a smile, he flexed his shoulders lightly, before telling Kairi, "The shoulders will do for now. I train hard to be strong, so my shoulders must be relaxed to fight effectively." Giving her a reassured look, Lucario let Kairi do her work.

He could feel her hands being incredibly soft against his fur, most likely the effects of the berry bath his friend had her take. Although at first he winced a little bit, knowing that Kairi was very unused to giving massages, it wasn't long before she had been striking the spots that eased him the most. "You're doing pretty well for your first time…" he said to her, feeling his muscles ease up more with each passing moment. "You must have a natural talent for this, Kairi."

"You really think so?" Kairi was thoroughly surprised to hear him put out a compliment like this, especially for something that she had never done before in her life. Seeing him nod, Kairi was encouraged to do what she had been doing, hoping that she could please her mistress in this way one day if she really wanted to.

Nodding in agreement, the Lucario felt pleased to say the least at this surprise. As Kairi resumed it, the Milotic came closer to him, a curious glimmer in her eyes. "Feel free to stay in this cave for tonight, Fierce One," she said to him calmly, watching Kairi helping him to ease up a bit. "But, I have something to ask of you, when Kairi is asleep." Directing her telepathy towards Kairi, the Milotic spoke calmly to her. "Since you will be sleeping on my scales, our friend will take your bedding for the night."

"That sounds fair. I would hate for…Lucario here to sleep on the ground," Kairi said to her mistress, trying to rub her thumbs deeper into the canine's shoulders, hoping that she would help him further with this.

For once, almost every ounce of tension in his shoulders had disappeared, something that was sweet relief after days on end of training. "I should be thanking you, Kairi. I have not felt this relaxed ever since I met you master…many years ago."

As she continued the massage for a few moments longer, Kairi suddenly had a question come to her mind. Without even thinking about it, she asked both of them, "How did the two of you meet? You seem like such opposites…" Looking up, she noticed the Milotic look at their guest with a disapproving look, as if Kairi had just asked something that was far too taboo to even be worth mentioning.

Standing up, the Lucario brushed his fur a little bit with his paws, the warm water dripping off of him. "Another time, young human." Stepping out of the pool of water, he walked towards the bedding of leaves, which was only three meters away from the pool of water. Seating himself on it, he saw Kairi stand up, and he couldn't help but feel happy to know that she seemed to hold some potential. "Anyways, thank you. I feel much more relaxed thanks to your touch."

Blushing, Kairi felt flustered with his compliments. She didn't deserve such praise, especially considering it was her first time giving a massage. She was taken by surprise when her mistress took her tail and pulled Kairi closer to her, almost making her servant lose her balance. "You should get some rest now, Kairi. There is much more work ahead of you tomorrow."

Lifting Kairi out of the water and placing her on her back of scales, Milotic noticed how Kairi shivered from the sudden change of temperature. Using a calming aura to help soothe Kairi into a slumber, she gave her a few licks to get the water off of her. She knew that her servant had gone through so much that day, and hoped that she would have a peaceful sleep.

As the Milotic finished her final bath for Kairi, getting as much water as she could off of her, she heard something from Kairi that made her pause for an instant. Kairi's arms wrapped around her sleek, round body, and she seemed to nuzzle the scales with her cheek. "I love you, mistress…"

'…Love?' The Milotic was stunned to hear such a word coming from the human. She had merely expected Kairi to become loyal, faithful, beautiful and stronger with each passing day. The thought of her beginning to love her mistress was something that she never expected. Even the Lucario could tell how flustered and embarrassed she was to hear Kairi say such a thing. Stroking Kairi's bare back with her fins, she wanted to lull Kairi into a deep sleep before their conversation.

"Go to sleep now, Kairi…" It wasn't long before Kairi, who had been exhausted from everything that happened that day, fell asleep peacefully. With a sigh of relief, she waited a little while before speaking to the Lucario. "Now then, about the business that I wanted to talk to you about…"

Their resulting conversation had been carried for a little over an hour, and Kairi never heard a peep from her mistress. However, the Lucario had not been so tact on keeping his telepathy just between the two of them. Interspersed with her slumber, she heard a few pieces of their conversation throughout the hour.

At first, it began with a calm tone from the Lucario. "Ah yes, what could it be that you wanted me to do?" After a few moments, his tone of voice grew a bit louder, surprised at what the Milotic had requested of him to do. "You want me to do what?" As the Milotic explained to him what she wanted, he sounded even more shocked at her suggestion. "Her?! But she's a human! What makes you think that she will be able to…I understand your reasoning, but humans like Kairi shouldn't be able to…" His voice gradually grew calmer, and the Lucario gave in. "Even though there's no guarantee that she will be able to control it, I will attempt to teach her how…If only because you want me to."

The conversation ended, with perhaps some casual banter, but it grew so quiet that Kairi couldn't tell. As she slept, her dreams seemed to bring her to a strange place. The smell of something nauseating was held in the air, and Kairi could barely stand it.

"Come on, let's go outside, shall we?"

Hearing this odd voice, Kairi felt someone grab her hand, taking her out of the place. The door opened from the narrow hallway she had been standing in, and the sight from before was in front of her. The tree with the apple blossoms. What was this place?

Looking in front of her, she saw a boy who looked slightly younger than her. With snow-white hair like hers, the difference between him and her was drastic. He looked more like a scholar, with a black sweater and dress pants, especially as he seemed to look at Kairi with a cheerful outlook.

"There, nice and quiet, right?" he said to her calmly, his voice a bit on the higher spectrum. His red eyes looked at her calmly, and he shook her hand. "Anyways, I have a request to make for you…I know that you're not much of a trainer, Kairi, and I understand. But I want you to look for a Pokemon that's rumored to be around in this rainforest about a hundred kilometers from here." Patting her shoulder lightly, Kairi could hear herself ask just what exactly it was. What on earth was going on?

"Ah, well it's a Pokemon called a Milotic. Rumor has it that one has been hiding out in the rainforest in this unexplored part of the region. If you could go there and verify the rumors, it would really help with my studies…"

Almost feeling as if she was trapped, Kairi agreed to this. With that, the boy congratulated her and wished her the best of luck.

But, what did this all mean? Kairi couldn't figure it out at all, especially considering nothing made sense in this dream. Where was she? Who are these people? What was that smell in the strange place? All of these questions buzzed through her mind before something awoke her from her peaceful sleep.

"Kairi, please wake up…" A masculine voice sounded in Kairi's mind, sounding calm and prepared for the tasks at hand. As Kairi's eyes slowly opened up, she saw the Lucario standing before the pool of water, wondering just what exactly he had been doing.

With a yawn, Kairi pushed herself back up into a seated position on her mistress's scales, wondering why he was having her wake up when it was still dark. Flipping her legs over to face him, she rubbed her eyes and let off a long yawn. "W-Why did you wake me up so early? And why are you up as well?" she inquired, sounding quite tired, not desiring to leave her mistress's scales just yet.

Seeing how reluctant Kairi was to actually wake up, the Lucario had doubts that Kairi could actually be taught. Even though her mistress, and his friend, did request it, that didn't mean it was possible. Seeing Kairi slip off of her mistress's scales and land softly in the water, he made a cross look. "Your mistress wanted me to help you train, so I need you to come with me this morning," he said to Kairi soundly, knowing full well that she wasn't used to waking up this early. Without the heat of the sun, the air was quite chilly; this would be the perfect condition to train Kairi.

Only vaguely remembering small parts of the conversation from the night before, Kairi had a few questions that crossed her mind. "Why did your mistress ask you to train me?" she asked him curiously, stepping out of the icy-cold waters. Even though it still made Kairi quite cold, her body had adapted to the conditions of the cavern so she wouldn't lose too much body heat in comparison to the first day. Stepping towards him, Kairi was about to protest about waking up so early once more until he spoke.

"Before you say anything, waking up early is optimal for training. It is perfect for conditioning one's mind for training. As for why I accepted, I'm doing this as a favor for her." He took a few steps towards the water, and dipped his paw into it briefly, checking the temperature. If the water was any colder, it would truly be freezing over, which somewhat surprised Lucario that Kairi could step in the water without flinching.

Looking back at her, he gave Kairi a pat on the shoulder. "One more thing, Kairi." His stare towards her grew a bit colder, if only because of the seriousness of the task that he had been set out to do. "Since I will be training you, I want you to refer to me as master from now on. No exceptions. Do you understand?"

Giving him a small nod, Kairi now had to ask the question once more. "But what did she ask you to teach me? I thought I had been doing fine, so what could you teach me that she couldn't?" Tapping her toe on the floor a little bit, she held her hands behind her back, curious to know what it is.

Seeing her act that way, Lucario couldn't help but find Kairi cute. It wasn't every day that he had been requested to teach a human about something as grandeur as this. At the very least, he thought to himself, she seemed to be curious towards all of this. Motioning for her to walk with him, he merely said to her, "She told me about the troubles you have been having with some of the local Pokemon."

At this, Kairi's cheeks turned a slight pink, embarrassed that her mistress would tell him about her problems. She remained silent, but could feel herself grow a bit warmer, as if she had been pressed back into a corner.

"However, as for what I am going to teach you, perhaps you will find out, perhaps you will not."

As they exited the cave, Lucario said to her, "Keep up to the best of your abilities!" Dashing forward, he kept a quick pace, but still reasonably slow enough for Kairi to tag several feet behind him. This, of course, caught Kairi by surprise, as she hadn't been used to getting up this early, not to mention running as well. Every few seconds he would look back to see if Kairi had managed to keep up with him; even though she struggled sometimes, such as running over a stray root or avoiding some branches, she seemed to have the dexterity needed for the training.

As he came closer to the spot he had been leading her to, his thoughts drifted back to what his friend, the Graceful One, had told him. She wanted him to teach Kairi how to protect herself as she goes about doing her tasks, which sounded reasonable enough. He remembered when he sparred with the Milotic from time to time when they were younger, before they realized how dangerous humans were. Ironic, then, that he was going to train one to protect herself.

They came to a clearing in the forest, where there had been pebbles making up the shore to the stream. In particular, what struck Kairi's eyes were the two boulders on either side of the stream. Both of them looked as if they were cut from the same stone, with the same appearance. Kairi walked up to one of them, noticing that it had been a bit taller than her; however, it would still be possible to climb up onto the top.

"Kairi, get on top of the boulder," Lucario said bluntly, leaping up and landing on the other boulder with ease. He sat down, and watched carefully as Kairi obeyed him, getting to the top of the boulder with relative ease. He seemed to have his interest piqued as he thought of what he will attempt to do for Kairi. Lucario felt the cold air chill them, and the flowing of the water had a gentle sound to it, all of which could be distractions for Kairi. The optimal conditions for meditation.

Once he saw that she sat on the boulder, this was when the training began. Facing Kairi, he said to her in a calm voice, "You are going to learn how to meditate. This is crucial to the first step towards being able to defend yourself." He adjusted his position to that of meditation, crossing his legs and placing his arms to rest upon his legs. Lucario saw the human girl watch him curiously, and he nodded, if only for a moment, to motion for her to follow him. "Do as I do, Kairi."

Seeing him sit in that posture, Kairi made certain to mimic him, if only to try to learn what exactly it was that he would be teaching. A small groan escaped her as she crossed her legs, placing her arms on her legs just as he had done. After a moment of making sure she had been sitting the same way as he had, Kairi let off a sigh of relief. But…What was next? That question irked Kairi to a grand degree, seeing her master already starting to get deeper into meditation, the flame of aura licking the surrounding air just a mere few centimeters off of his body. She wanted to ask him, but at the same time Kairi had no idea if it was allowed or not to interrupt him in this state.

Sensing Kairi's frustration, Lucario spoke to her through telepathy, the same means her mistress used to speak to her. "Keep your eyes closed and focus on your center," he explained to her, taking in deep breaths and focusing more on his own inner being. Opening his eyes to take a peek at Kairi, he wanted to make sure that she had been doing it properly. "Do not let anything else distract you. The winds cries are silent, and the cold is nonexistent to those who meditate properly," Lucario told her, shutting his eyes once more and resuming his meditation.

Even though Lucario managed to get a perfect trance in meditation, Kairi did not have such luck. Even when she sat there, eyes closed and in the proper position, she couldn't feel anything remotely similar to what he had been experiencing. In the morning darkness, Lucario took one look at Kairi and sighed to himself. 'This is going to take longer than I thought…We may be out here all day at this rate,' he thought to himself, before noticing his paws clasping over his stomach.

How funny; he had been in such deep of a meditative state that he failed to acknowledge that they both needed something to eat. Thinking that this was perhaps why Kairi had been having problems with finding her center, he got up onto his feet and leaped off of the large boulder. He took one more glance at Kairi before disappearing into the foliage, hoping that there were some berries near their location.

As he scoured the area for something to eat, Kairi grew more and more frustrated with each passing moment. Why had the wind been making her chilled to the bone? Why could the stream still be heard? Attempting to tone them out didn't work, and the teenage servant only managed to become irritated. Even her thoughts to attempt to calm her didn't work, and this resulted in Kairi standing up on the boulder and stamping her foot on the plateau out of frustration.

"Why can't I get it right?!" Kairi exclaimed to herself, for once looking frustrated with herself. For a moment, she even started to ramble, questioning if she wasn't good enough to learn how to meditate, and then suddenly becoming upset with having to tell her mistress that she failed the training. A slew of emotions welled up inside of her, and Kairi had no idea how to handle them.

Lucario, who had returned with two berries in hand, saw Kairi standing on top of the rock. Sighing, he figured that she must have gotten frustrated. Leaping over the stream, he looked up at her and said, "There's no use in being upset, Kairi. You must try again."

"How can I try again if I have no clue what I'm looking for?!" Kairi snapped, pausing for an instant before looking terrified. Slipping down the boulder, she clasped her hands over her mouth, distraught at her own words. "I-I'm sorry! I-It's just…"

Surprised that she had snapped at him, Lucario was about to tell her off until he realized what she had been missing. It wasn't hunger nor lack of focus; instead, it had merely been his failure as a teacher. Flushing in embarrassment, he stepped up to Kairi and patted her shoulder lightly. "My apologies, Kairi. I got ahead of myself…I am not used to teaching humans about this. It comes naturally to Meditites and Riolus, so I assumed…" Handing her the berry, placing it in her hand, Lucario made a smile. "Eat this berry then return to the boulder. I'll teach you how to meditate properly if you will allow it." Along with this, he gave her a stern look. "However, if you snap like that again, I will make you train harder, understand? I will let it go this once, if only because training has just begun."

Acknowledging his words, Kairi ate the berry quickly, shivering a little bit from the cool morning air. Already they had been out here for what seemed like an hour, and it felt like it would take a while longer before any progress would be made. But, oddly enough, Kairi felt that, with Lucario's help in finding her center, this would go smoothly. He motioned her up the boulder, and instructed her to sit in the meditative posture she had taken earlier. He returned to his boulder, and returned to his position, along with Kairi doing the same.

Once he made sure that she was ready, he started speaking to her once more. "Try to imagine a ball of light, right in the center of your body." Gently, he patted what would be underneath Kairi's ribs, indicating that that should be where she would be looking. "It could appear as anything you like, but no matter what, you should never look away. Clear your thoughts and focus only on this ball."

Sighing to herself, Kairi tried to focus on what he called the center. In her mind, a small blue ball formed in the area that he had suggested. Even if it took several minutes to begin, Kairi soon found herself starting to focus on that more than the elements. It had been an unnerving sensation at first, if only because it sort of felt as if she had been losing herself, but needless to say she also enjoyed it in a way.

Lucario opened his eyes, and saw Kairi starting to get the hang of it. A smile formed on his face, and he stood up, slipping off of the rock that he had sat upon. Even though he found it hard to believe, Kairi seemed to actually be getting the hang of meditation rather quickly. Even when he picked up and tossed a pebble a meter away from her, she didn't flinch. "Now I see why the Graceful One favors you as a servant," he muttered to himself, realizing that she had quite a bit of potential.

After several more minutes, with Lucario eating his berry, he decided that it had been time to get Kairi out of her trance. Getting on the boulder, he shook Kairi's shoulder a little bit, making sure it wasn't too rough on her. "You may open your eyes now, Kairi." He sat down in front of her, and stared intently, for the next part would be even more important than the meditation. This would prove to be the moment of truth for Lucario, whether it would be possible to teach a human his secrets.

As Kairi opened her eyes, she gave a smile and lowered her head a little bit. It had been quite relaxing, to say the least, to find her meditative state for once. So much so that it felt as if she had been groggy afterwards. "Did I do well, master?" she asked him curiously, letting off a yawn and rubbing her eyes a bit.

"You did very well once you found your center," he said to Kairi soundly, seeing how pleased she had been to hear that coming from him. "Now then, are you ready for the second part of your training? After this, it will be all for today." Once she nodded, he didn't return to his boulder to meditate upon. Instead, he remained in front of her, contemplating on what to do next.

"So what exactly is the second part, master?" Kairi inquired, her innocent gaze causing the Lucario to act nervously, something that she hadn't seen him like before.

Being this close to Kairi made Lucario a bit nervous, if only because he wasn't used to being this close to a human, especially one who didn't wear anything. He attempted to find words for his instructions, but found himself silent for a moment, hoping that he wouldn't say anything that would insult his friend and her mistress. Finally, he spoke after about a minute of contemplation. "Kairi, if you would…I want you to sit on my lap. I-It would make it easier for the both of us."

Blinking, almost confounded by what he had requested of her, Kairi almost wanted to chuckle because she thought it had been a joke. However, she had to ask again to make sure she had heard right. "What was that now…?"

Lucario found himself unable to explain to Kairi what he had meant, even with his purest intentions. He looked incredibly guilty towards Kairi, especially as she gave him this awkward glance at his request as she processed the thought. "I-It's not what you think, Kairi… I don't share that same… attraction with humans." As he grew more and more nervous, he proceeded to scratch behind his ears, hoping that he could find a way to explain it. "I-It will be easier for me to touch you to…No, that's not it…"

He scratched the back of his ears furiously, a habit he picked up as a young RIolu, as he tried to word himself properly. If his friend hadn't made Kairi a sight for sore eyes, this wouldn't have been so bad.

Finally, Kairi spoke out, "You mean this is for training?" Even though Kairi found it amusing that he had become this nervous, his words struck her as odd. What was this about not sharing an attraction? Why had he gotten so awkward with his words so suddenly? Oblivious to what he had meant, Kairi's thoughts had been drifting towards what it is he had wanted to teach her. Ironic, since before she became a servant, she would have caught what it was he had been so awkward about.

"Y-Yes! This is for training!" Pausing for a moment, Lucario hung his head in defeat. The first human he ever spoke to, and he can't even get his thoughts straight. What was wrong with him? Even with others of his own species he could converse casually, no matter who they were. However, he had been ready to brush aside the guilt and recompose himself once more. Returning to his more serious behavior from a mere few minutes ago, he resumed what he had been going to say. "It's a crucial part of your training. Without this, it would take weeks, maybe months to complete your training. Do you understand, Kairi?"

Nodding, Kairi understood that this would be important. "I do understand, master." She saw him motion for her to sit upon his lap, and as she did Kairi took a moment to admire how soft he had been. Odd, considering he had surely been through many fights; she had expected it to be coarser and rough, so it surprised her to learn of such.

Lucario had been uneasy as Kairi chose to sit on his lap. He positioned her in a way so she would avoid the spike in his chest, but more problems arose from having her like this. Her soft skin rested against his fur, along with the warmth that came with it. If that wasn't enough, he could smell the berry dye in her hair, along with the scent of the Milotic. Although it was impossible to tell, he found himself blushing, flustered from this. He took in deep breaths, and thought about the favor he would be doing his friend. Focusing on Kairi, he began.

His paws came from behind and placed themselves ever so carefully on Kairi's hips and abdomen. "Alright, now close your eyes again and focus on your center."

Silent, but hearing his words, Kairi did as she had been told. In only a matter of minutes, she returned to the meditative state, her eyes shut as she did her best to focus on the core of her being. Although it hadn't been perfect, the Lucario saw that she had great form for being new to this practice.

His hold around Kairi's center grew a bit tighter, preparing to give Kairi a boost of his own power to help instill the change her mistress desired. If it didn't go well, it could very well result in internal injury, but Lucario wouldn't allow anything to go wrong. His hopes were that, in a few minutes, Kairi would be able to recognize her own aura, the energy that every living being has in this world.

"Focus completely on your center. Watch as it becomes a flame, and begins to grow larger the more focus you put onto it. Watch carefully; feel the warmth that rises from the flame. Feel the energy that it gives off." As he said this, Lucario calmly allowed some of his own aura to emanate from his paws, hoping that his presence would allow it to begin to grow.

As time passed, Kairi indeed felt something warm grow inside of her, listening to his instructions intently. The image in her mind had been a white sphere, which, as Lucario started to pour small increments of aura into her, had started to become a blue color. Along with this came a bit of pain, something that distressed Kairi. In her abdomen it seemed to feel as if it had smoldering embers within it, which made it all the more difficult for Kairi to focus.

Lucario could sense Kairi's distress with the pain, and controlled his aura a little more. If she had been feeling pain, it made him wonder if humans weren't able to learn this at all. However, he shifted his paws slightly, encouraging Kairi all the while. "Keep focused, Kairi. Do not let the center distort or change form. I have no control over it, you do."

Kairi's center had started to vibrate violently, as if it had begun to reject the aura that Lucario had been giving her. With his encouragement though, Kairi used her entire being to put the center back into control. For five minutes, it looked as if Kairi had been losing from the outside, but internally her will had shaped the center back into the sphere.

Three minutes afterwards, and the sphere had finally accepted the aura. Her center turned dark blue, and it seemed to pulsate with the energy that it carried. It even had a glow to it, albeit weak. Kairi had been confused, until her master nudged her a little bit.

"Kairi, what did you see?" he inquired, releasing his paws from her sides and placing them upon her shoulders. When she explained what her center had looked like, Lucario had been extremely pleased. "So you recognized your own aura."

"Master, what is aura? Why is it important to the training?" Kairi asked him, leaning against him a little bit, tired from the initial training. Her head rested on his shoulder, and even Lucario could tell that she had been ready for a break from their training.

Wrapping his arms around her stomach, Lucario felt strangely happy to have her as an apprentice. He could tell that this will be incredibly interesting to watch her progress, especially considering her body didn't reject awakening her aura. "Aura is the energy within any living thing. Everything has aura, but it takes practice and concentration to truly utilize aura. Once you can control this power to your will, it can be used for many things."

Her master allowed her to let the idea sink in, while the sky finally began to glow from the sun peeking over the horizon. "We will take a small break, then continue our training. There's one more thing I want you to learn before we return back to your mistress." Seeing no response from her, most likely because she had been understandably tired, he had been about to get up until he realized that Kairi had been relaxing against him. He found himself in yet another awkward position with his human disciple, especially considering she had seemed so comfortable with this as well. He feared that if she got too attached to him it would be more difficult to train her in aura.

However, that wasn't to say that he wasn't afraid of himself as well. She seemed very promising, but also it didn't help that she gave off a warmth that he hadn't felt in quite some time as well. He had been too embarrassed to admit it, but there is one thing he wanted to say to her.

"Kairi, I need you to get off of me…"

Despite feeling comfortable as she had, Kairi was quick to get up onto her feet, stretching her arms as a smile grew on her face. "I can't believe you actually helped me unlock my aura. It feels kind of exciting, doesn't it?"

Lucario stood up, placing his hands on his hips as he watched Kairi slip off of the boulder. Although it was understandable that she would be excited, he didn't share the same enthusiasm that she had. If it wasn't for him, it would have been very hard for Kairi to even recognize her own aura. He had to do training on his own when he was a Riolu and a younger Lucario. They were naturals at picking it up, however.

"Don't get too excited over it," he said to her, leaping off the boulder and landing in front of Kairi. "Your control over aura is weak, even to the point that a Riolu with a day of training has more of a handle on it than you." Lucario turned his back to Kairi, and took a few steps away from her, speaking to her all the while. "You will need to concentrate hard, most likely harder than you ever have before I can teach you how to use it. Even then, there are other things that I must teach you. Lessons such as protecting yourself from harm."

Kairi held her hands behind her back, listening to her master soundly. "I still have a long way to go then, huh?"

He acknowledged her question, and nodded. "Yes, it will take a long time to master aura, if it is even possible for a human to master aura." Shutting his eyes, he faced Kairi and prepared his thoughts for this small speech he had been giving her. "I only recently mastered aura, but even then there are some mysteries about it that even I have no idea about."

He paused, and smiled as he looked at Kairi once more. "Even so, I have to admit I'm surprised that you were able to recognize your own aura so quickly. That is not easy, even with guidance." His thoughts traversed to if he didn't come here the night before; how would Kairi fare without this training? Clearly she needed help from the Swellow and Victreebell incidents, but nonetheless he had to get himself back on track.

Kairi smiled, hearing all of this, and stretched her legs a little bit as she found herself wondering what would be next. "So, what would be next then? Would it be with aura, or something else?"

Lucario managed to feel as if training wasn't going to be tedious after all. Even though he wished to have his lessons taken a little more seriously, he felt glad that she would be so enthusiastic about what he would be teaching her.

Looking at the sky, however, brought to his attention something her mistress had stated the night before. Kairi had duties to do as her servant, and it would be about this time that she would normally wake up. He motioned for Kairi to walk with him, and she did, back to the cavern. They would continue their training later in the day, after she had her duties done.

"Nothing with aura for now. But Kairi, do you know how to throw a punch?" As they walked, he heard no response from her, and sighed a bit. "It's alright if you don't know, later today I will teach you. As long as you're willing to learn, I will teach." He patted her soft back lightly, reassuring her that they will get up to par in due time.

"I can't say how much it means to me that you're teaching me all of this," Kairi told him, sounding like she had mixed emotions all of a sudden. "Yesterday, after that creature attacked me while I had been searching for eggs, as I walked back to the cavern I felt scared. I had no idea whether anything else had been going to leap out at me or hurt me. I had no idea how to defend myself…"

Lucario could sense the disappointment she felt when she spoke of this, and knew that within a few days she would be able to at the very least hold her ground. However, he didn't want Kairi to look so glum when they came back to the cavern. Wrapping an arm around her shoulder, he pulled her closer to him in an attempt to make her feel better. "There was nothing you could have done, Kairi. But I will do everything I can to teach you how to protect yourself."

Feeling glad that he was there to train her, Kairi felt relieved that she, in due time, would be able to protect herself from threats like that. Silent, she could only help but wonder how her mistress would react to the news they had to tell her. Even as they walked into the cavern, Kairi shivered with delight, hoping that she would react positively.

Even before they came into view, the Milotic could sense how delighted Kairi seemed. When they stepped into view, she lifted her head out of the pool of water, having taken the morning to relax a bit. She had hoped that they carried good news with them on Kairi's progress. "Has she been awakened?"

Lucario gave a small nod in response, speaking to her with his telepathy. "She has awakened. It will take quite a while before she can control her aura properly, but Kairi does show promise, Graceful One."

While they spoke, exchanging a few more words, Kairi had wandered around the cavern just a few steps away from them. Her arms behind her back, Kairi knew that she would have some duties to proceed with soon. Milotic smiled, enjoying that she had been showing progress as her servant, and spoke to her. "Very good, Kairi. You're doing better than your mistress anticipated, but I will not allow you to become idle. Are you ready for another berry bath, my servant?"

Having caught her attention, Kairi made a small smile at the mention of a berry bath. If she could take enough baths to where this color is permanent, Kairi would gladly take a million baths, especially if it meant striving to be as beautiful as her mistress. "Of course!" Looking over at Lucario, she bowed lightly towards him. "So we will continue the training after the bath?"

Lucario sat on the bedding of leaves Kairi had prepared, going through the motions of meditation once more. "I will be here when you return. We can continue your training afterwards," he said to her, noticing her mistress nod in agreement.

"Yes, don't worry Kairi." Slipping out of the water, she circled around Kairi, sensing some aura from her, as it had a similar feeling to her good friend. "Do you remember which berries to pick?" she asked her servant curiously, knowing that they only went to it once before.

Kairi replied soundly that she did remember, but questioned on where the tree had been. Not surprised, Milotic spoke to her. "There is no need to worry about the tree. You should be able to recognize it without a problem. Head northwest out of the cave and you should be able to find them." Pointing her fins to the direction she needed to go, Milotic also made one more thing clear. "I will not be with you this time, as I expect to do this on your own."

"Of course, I won't disappoint my mistress. I will get the berries so I can have my bath, don't worry about that."

Hearing that response made the Milotic all the more pleased with how Kairi had been turning out. Despite a few moments where she had gotten frustrated or upset, Milotic had felt satisfied with how obedient Kairi had been over the past two days. This made her wonder how Kairi would be in a week, or a month no less. After all, Kairi is now hers to keep, just as Kairi had kept Pokemon before her. Giving her a lick on the cheek, Milotic noticed Kairi giggling, and she followed up with a, "Don't disappoint me now." Unwinding from around her, Milotic gently pushed Kairi with her fins, prompting her to get a move on towards her objective. She could tell that morning had finally come, with the blue sky seen from the entrance of her cavern, so she would not be concerned for Kairi losing her way through the forest.

As Kairi exited the cave, eager to get the berries, Milotic returned to her friend. Circling around the pile of leaves, they took this time to talk to one another. At first it had been idle chat, but then the subject of Kairi arose.

"How long do you think it will be, Fierce One?" Milotic inquired, wondering what his thoughts were on the matter. "You and I know that aura takes years to master. Just being able to recognize your own aura is only the first step."

Lucario broke his meditative stance for now, and reclined back on the Milotic's scales. His arms pulled up, he took this opportunity to unwind from training Kairi. Closing his eyes, he couldn't help but admire how soft she was, something which proved that she took great care of her body. "If you had to ask me, she should be able to have basic control over her aura in five days. After that it should be about two months before she can use aura for basic combat; nothing advanced."

"Although…" Opening one eye to glance at his friend, he had an inquisitive look appear on his face. There had been something he'd been meaning to ask her since meeting Kairi last night. "You never did tell me why you made Kairi, a human girl, as your servant."

"She was another human trainer." Milotic retorted bluntly, having no other answer than that. "I couldn't allow her to capture more Pokemon from around here. So in response I made her forget everything, and captured her instead."

"You know, the first time we met you had the same attitude towards that trainer." With her answer, he didn't seem phased at all. Instead, it seemed that he had expected an answer like this to be said, as if their conversation had been calculated from the very beginning. "I despise trainers just as much as you, Graceful One. But the question begs to be asked; was it necessary to force Kairi into servitude?"

"Imagine this scenario, Fierce One." The Milotic didn't seem angry or upset at all; in fact she seemed quite pleased to have him ask her all of these questions. It was as if the Milotic had finally had a chance to make her thoughts clear for once. Even if she found his question odd, she would be willing to answer it as truthfully as she could.

"Kairi walks into my cavern, and I erase her memories, as I have done. Now, instead of forcing her to be my servant, she wakes up and starts to wander the jungle. Confused… Scared… Not knowing what everything was, or even who she is, do you really think that she could have survived out there for a single night? She would have perished, and although I would be glad to be rid of another trainer, I would not allow that when I could have a human who is willing to serve me."

"I see. I understand your reasoning there." Lucario replied, acknowledging that the scenario could have been a lot worse if Milotic hadn't been thinking of herself. At the very least, she had been incredibly responsible for the girl, which is more than he could say for the few trainers he had seen.

"Tell me this, then. You seem to be slightly attached to my servant, Fierce One."

The Lucario made an attempt to ignore her comment on that matter, already trying to ignore that and think of her as a disciple. Even though she could tell that he wanted to hide his feelings for Kairi, Lucario, oddly enough, felt compelled to talk to her more about it. After all, she was the one Pokemon that he would trust with his life. "She's only a human, although it doesn't help that you're helping her to look beautiful… I can sense her attraction towards me… Maybe I need to be harsher on her during our training."

Surprised at this, the Milotic felt that this should be impossible. As a former trainer, Kairi shouldn't be so friendly with Pokemon; she should be tempted more to utilize them to her own benefit. Instead, she seemed to strike up bonds with Pokemon rather quickly, something that she had not anticipated. On top of that, sharing even a little bit of aura, as Lucario had used his own to awaken Kairi's, can form a bond quicker than most. She would be curious to know how Kairi would be like when her aura only gets stronger in due time. Could it be that her concept in humans had been heavily flawed, or is Kairi an anomaly? Despite having a lot of run ins with 'evil' trainers, for the first time Milotic had found herself questioning her logic.

"Time will tell what will happen, Fierce One. Though maybe you should be less soft on her during your training. After all, remember the last trainer you saw…?"


	7. Chapter VI

"Alright, that makes twenty three berries."

Kairi set the berries down onto a small pile, rotating her arms back and forth for a moment to let them loosen up after climbing up and down the tree repeatedly. It had been about an hour since she started, and thankfully no Pokémon had been around to attack her this time. Looking around one more time, Kairi couldn't be too careful. Not many Pokémon really knew of her relationship with her mistress, if any at all other than Aipom and the Fierce One.

Standing on the tips of her toes, then returning back to a lax position, Kairi couldn't help but feel as if something had been missing. After a minute of contemplating, she snapped her fingers. "A few more will do the trick!" she proclaimed to herself, quickly walking up to another tree, scaling it as quickly as she could. Even if Kairi had still been clumsy at it, her determination still drove her to scale the branches.

As the human servant gathered the last of the berries, unbeknownst to her yet another pair of eyes glared at her. It seemed that today would be no exception for Kairi being preyed upon. A serpentine tongue flickered the air, his red-orange eyes watching her carefully. Even though he could barely make out Kairi's nude form, the scent she carried seemed interesting, consisting of berries, water and something else. Wondering what exactly Kairi was, the Pokémon stayed within the foliage, waiting patiently for a chance to strike at the girl.

As Kairi gathered the last of the berries, descending from the tree's branches and landing on the ground with a soft thud, she made a small hum to herself out of satisfaction. "Alright, so that should be enough for the bath," she mused, placing her hands upon her bare hips, looking at the small mound of berries that she had gathered. Satisfied with the amount, Kairi crouched down to begin picking up the berries.

The moment Kairi crouched down, the Pokémon sprung from its hiding place. It would have hit Kairi dead on if she hadn't crouched at that moment, but he recuperated as he gained his ground. A mere few centimeters lower and he would have hit her on the head. Showing his serpentine body to Kairi, his icy gaze stared her down once she realized that something had passed her. This had been a Serperior, a Pokémon who had been on the prowl for a few hours now for something to eat.

Seeing Kairi stand up, taken by surprise at his presence, the Serperior had been confounded if only for a few seconds. He had surely thought that Kairi had been some form of Pokémon judging from the way she smelled, not a young human. Flicking his tongue, he could still smell the unique scent her flesh carried, hungry to get Kairi into the hold of his coils. It attacked at full speed again, proving too quick for Kairi to react. His tail hit Kairi along the stomach, causing her to jolt back a meter as she lost her breath.

Falling to her knees, Kairi found herself coughing. Unlike the other time with Swellow and Victreebell, this had been the first time she legitimately felt outmatched. Trying to regain her stance, Kairi wondered why the Serperior had attacked her to begin with. It took a moment, but Kairi quickly realized what he wanted from her. She proceeded an attempt to run, but found herself tripping from a Vine Whip that the Serperior made.

"Please, don't!" she cried out, seeing the grass-type start to coil around her, starting with her stomach and up to her chest. Kairi struggled, kicking her feet in an attempt to wriggle free, but found it futile.

Seeing her legs kicking a bit, the Serperior wrapped a coil or two around her thighs and knees, preventing any movement from the human girl. He would have no chances of having her escape him, especially considering he had quite the appetite. However, as he coiled around her, he noticed something peculiar. Her skin had been quite soft, something that he quite admired about her already. Lightening up his coils just a bit, he shifted them back and forth to admire her skin, not wanting to squeeze the life out of her like he normally would.

Kairi felt his coils shift a bit, but still wouldn't allow her to be free. Shutting her eyes, a small blush on her face, Kairi found her heart racing in sheer terror, feeling as if it would burst out of her chest at any moment. However, when he lightened up his coils just a bit, Kairi tried to wriggle free but failed to do so. Looking up at him, perhaps attempting to speak to him would work, even if they essentially spoke two different languages. "C-Could you p-please let me go…?" she requested, her eyes starting to water up a bit in desperation.

Despite having preyed upon many other Pokémon, Kairi may have proven to be the most difficult to devour out of all of them. Adjusting Kairi and his coils so that she had been upright, Serperior looked down upon her, seeing her tear-filled eyes begging him for mercy. This face had been nothing new to him, as many Pokémon had the same expression that this human had. And yet, he couldn't bear to snuff the life out of her.

Her skin had a light shine to it, along with a glow from the improved circulation the berry bath had given Kairi. The scent of the berry dye had been noticeable, although it didn't sit well with him due to how strong it had been. He licked Kairi's forehead, sampling her to see what exactly she tasted like. As her scent had portrayed, it had been a mixture of human flesh, berries and water, a fascinating taste unlike any other. However, there had been one scent that he had just noticed, that of scales. Damp scales, to be more precise.

Feeling him lick her forehead, Kairi started to allow a stream of tears to come down. Even though her mistress had tried to make her more composed with encouragement, nothing could have prepared Kairi for the many thoughts racing through her head. Shaking her head, she made one last beg for the Serperior to change his mind about all of this.

Even while she tried to struggle to break free of his coils, the Serperior didn't let his coils slack for a moment. The grass snake didn't want its meal to get away, and yet a thought ran through his head. Would he feel guilty for devouring this girl? She seemed desperate to the point of begging, but also she had such an appealing look to her, along with the way that she looked at him. It would almost be to the point of heartbreaking.

However, despite all the thoughts, the Serperior knew that instinct told him to eat all that is weaker than him. Unfortunately for Kairi, she fell underneath this category. And so, he opened his maw and proceeded to place it over her head, planning on devouring her without giving a crushing blow.

Kairi gasped, and found her head engulfed in his maw. "N-No! P-Please!" she cried out, wriggling inside the coils as she felt one of them unwind, the Serperior making a swallow as he descended down to her shoulders. Struggling all the more to break free, Kairi felt that this would be the end of her.

That is, until her aura had flared up from the impending doom. Pulsating within her, sensing that she had been in danger, it gave off a small glow around Kairi; nothing too large, but the glow would be about a centimeter in diameter around her.

The Serperior froze, sensing the aura that she had emanated. It was likely Kairi's fear for her own life being taken, but he wouldn't know such things. Having Kairi partially in his mouth gave him an opportunity to taste her even further, and that was when he identified the mystery scent as a Milotic's.

It was then that he receded from her, taking his maw off of Kairi completely. Seeing her wet from his saliva, he even proceeded to attempt to brush some of it off. Honestly, the Serperior had been more worried about the girl than his own appetite. The unusual scent was something that caught his attention, but it was the flare of aura that worried him so much. If she could produce aura like that when she is in danger, than that meant that her guardian had the ability to use aura. He wouldn't devour this human if it meant his own death; that would be foolhardy. On the other hand, this child had been quite a sight for sore eyes, almost attracted to it at that moment, and rid himself of the thought of killing her altogether.

Letting his coils go slack, he watched as she landed with a thud on the soft ground. The Serperior, for once, would allow Kairi to go freely.

Confused as to the sudden change in behavior, Kairi got back up to her feet and watched the grass snake worriedly. Wiping her head to try to get it dry, she backed up from the Serperior, hoping to gather up the berries and run back to the cavern, away from this predator. Her breaths heavy, she then felt something squish against her foot. "Wha?" In her fear and sole focus on the Serperior, Kairi had accidentally stepped on one of the berries that she had picked. Lifting up her foot, Kairi looked confounded. "Aw! I just picked that!" she exclaimed, seeing some of the berry juices spread across her sole.

Although Kairi had backed away, the Serperior kept moving towards her, to the point where he had been a half meter from her body. He looked saddened, almost as if he had been apologizing for what he had done to her. Even with Kairi's miniscule amount of aura, she could sense a little bit of his emotions.

When Kairi stepped on the berry, he looked down and saw her trying to scrape it off. Motioning for her to not scrape it off, he coiled around her ankle and lifted the foot up. It would be a waste for her to waste the berry, especially considering it was his favorite. He made sure that Kairi had her balance before he made use of it, licking it off of her. Thankfully, there had been no dirt on her feet.

At first, Kairi had been confused, since her heart sank a bit at the sensation she had felt. It was as if one emotion was running through her, but another decided to appear, one that didn't feel like her own. She wondered what exactly it had been, but only one word could describe it: sadness. Coupled with Serperior's seeming apology, Kairi made the connection that the feeling had come from him. But how? How was that even possible?

Once he started licking her, though, Kairi couldn't help but stifle some laughter from her. As much as she tried, though, Kairi found herself letting off small chuckles at the tickling sensation he had been giving her. "S-Stop it! Please!" she exclaimed in between her chuckles, even falling over onto her rear at this. Holding her stomach, she couldn't help but laugh a bit more until he ceased this. Once she looked up at him, Kairi quickly realized that perhaps this Serperior had been friendly. Holding her arms out, the Serperior lowered his head into her embrace, her arms wrapping around his serpentine neck. Despite being enemies just a mere few minutes ago, Kairi came to the realization that this Serperior felt bad for his actions. Thus, it seemed that his apology had been accepted, even if Kairi is still intimidated by him to an extent.

Regaining her self-control, Kairi got back up onto her feet. "I forgive you," she said to him calmly, still keeping an eye on him just in case he attempted to try anything. Even though he did seem apologetic, Kairi couldn't be too careful. Turning towards the pile of berries, Kairi suddenly felt a bit embarrassed at how many she had gathered. It had clearly been more than she remembered in terms of quantity, so now she had been stuck at the dilemma. How would she carry all of these back?

It was then that Serperior slithered around Kairi, looking at the berries that she had been looking upon. He thought that he knew what Kairi had been trying to do, and using his tail he picked up a few of the berries so it would lighten up her load. Using his mouth as well, he found it strange that he feared this girl but also wanted to care for her at the same time. She had been smaller than him by quite an extent, but he didn't dare to find out who her guardian was if she had aural abilities. "Serperior!" he exclaimed, hoping that she truly did forgive him for his actions.

Picking up the last of the berries, Kairi couldn't help but smile a bit at the Serperior's change of heart. "Thank you, mistress would have a fit if she knew…" she stated, just about ready to walk onwards with the berries. However, it was then that a small pang of fear crossed her; not from within, but from the Serperior. Her smile fading, she looked over at the Serperior, who had started to slither alongside her. "Is there something the matter?" Kairi inquired, slowing her pace as they moved through the foliage towards the cavern.

The Serperior noticed Kairi say something to him. He didn't quite know what she had said, since neither he nor many Pokémon in this tropical forest knew human language. The only one that he could think of would be the Graceful One, but even then she despised humans. However, she had most likely expressed some curiosity towards his strange behavior, something that he admitted had probably been a dead giveaway towards his uneasiness. Unsure of how to express what he had been thinking, he nuzzled Kairi's bare stomach, hoping that this would ease her up as well.

Jumping a little on her spot, Kairi's face flushed red as she felt the Serperior rub his head against her stomach. She let off a giggle, the nuzzling giving her a tickling sensation. After a moment of this, she tilted the Serperior's head upwards as she nuzzled it back with her cheek. "It's fine, you don't have to tell me," she told him calmly, hoping that he wouldn't feel guilty over the decision he had made earlier.

Seeing the girl so happy with his nuzzling, it even made him perk up into a good mood once more. His cheeks turned red as she nuzzled him back, loving the feeling that she did care for him as well despite almost being his meal a mere bit ago. With all the berries accounted for, he stood up, awaiting Kairi to lead. When she did, he followed suit, going by her side and slightly behind her, in case her guardian happened to show up at any given point in time. He didn't regret sparing her in the slightest, despite his stomach growling a little bit. Perhaps he could get a small treat for himself as a sort of pat on the back.

After quite a while, as Kairi tried to speak to the Serperior every so often, they both arrived at the entrance of her mistress's den. Sighing a little, she knew that her mistress would never allow another Pokémon that wasn't the Fierce One, and she did enjoy this Pokémon's company. "Sorry, but you can't come with me," she said to the Serperior, turning to him as she put on a small smile. "I'm sure you understand that much."

Hearing Kairi say this, the Serperior could tell that he should make himself scarce. Placing the berries out onto the soft ground, Kairi could sense a hint of disappointment as he started to slither away. However, he spoke to Kairi once more, using the sounds that he had been using this whole time. A slight hint of a word had been heard to Kairi, at first it had been hard to decipher what exactly he had been attempting to say. As she picked up the berries, she noticed that he looked at her, almost unable to go away from her for that instant.

"What is it?"

The Serperior slithered back towards Kairi, looking into her eyes rather sincerely. He draped his tail around her shoulders, and nuzzled her cheek lightly. As he spoke, Kairi managed to make out two words. "… Meet again?"

Blinking, Kairi had been taken aback at the fact that he spoke to her. What had been the cause of it? A smile formed on her face, and she let off a nod. "We can meet again. You can help me pick out the best berries tomorrow, same place. Would that be alright?" Seeing him nod, she blushed a bit as he nuzzled her bare stomach once more.

Blushing as well, he felt as if he had adopted a human child of his own at that moment. He got the hints that Kairi answered his question and felt pleased to know that she wanted to see him. Giving her one more lick on the cheek, he unwound his tail from her shoulders and gave one last look towards the nude human. He slithered away, disappearing into the foliage swiftly.

Hoisting the berries up into her arms for a better grasp on them, Kairi returned into the cavern. Walking down the steady incline, she could see her mistress preparing the concave structure while the Lucario had been within a meditative state. As she came into the main area, in view of the two of them, the Milotic moved towards Kairi with an inquiring look upon her face.

"You took longer to get back this time around. Were you eating berries while you were out?" she asked calmly, expressing a sort of curiosity towards her servant. It hadn't been like Kairi to be late in the little time she knew her servant. Either way, she allowed Kairi to walk past her with the berries in tow.

As Kairi dumped the berries in, she had to catch herself when she had been about to say something. After a moment, she answered with an oddly cheerful, "Yeah, I ate some berries when I noticed that a few trees were nearby." Despite this answer, Kairi felt a sense of guilt come over her for lying. When she had started to climb into the structure, her mistress batted a sort of distrustful glare.

She knew that Kairi had lied at that moment, it had been clear from the guilt that the human felt after saying this. The Milotic wished that Kairi had spoken the truth, and pondered upon the fact that Kairi may still be vulnerable while running errands for her mistress. "Be sure to mix the berries thoroughly. The smoother the mixture, the better results that it will produce."

The Lucario had tuned into their conversation while he meditated, being able to clearly hear the two of them. He felt a strange sensation coming from Kairi, perhaps when she glanced over while mixing the berries. Whatever she felt, the Milotic had given him a response. "Maybe you are being too soft on her." He glanced over at Kairi, seeing her take an interest in him before she averted her glance. A sigh escaped him, hoping that Kairi would take her training seriously. Returning to his meditative state, he kept his calm composure.

As Kairi mixed the berries, the Milotic looked deep in thought. Something bothered her about this mixture of berries. Even though it had been producing the desired coloration and health effects, she felt that something had been off. She had learned this mixture from a long time ago, being one of the first things she learned as a Milotic, but she couldn't help but shake the feeling that the mixture had been wrong.

"Mistress?"

Looking at her servant, she noticed that the mixing had been done. "Ah, I was just thinking of something," she stated bluntly, unwilling to tell Kairi that she considered the mixture to be wrong. Looking over the mixture, she let off a cool stream of water, half-filling the tub before mixing it with scalding water. The mere smell of the mixture was enough to have the Milotic shift away from the structure. As Kairi submerged herself, she noticed the Lucario make a comment towards her.

"Is something bothering you? You seem upset."

Looking back towards the canine, she responded with a mere, "I will speak to you more once Kairi is asleep." Hearing her servant come back up, she turned back and moved closer. "Kairi, do you remember how to meditate? This will be another part of your training." Even though she knew the Lucario had commented on her meditation skills earlier, she held disbelief until she saw it for herself.

"I do remember, mistress." Kairi looked up at her mistress to the best of her extent, her eyes half-open due to the smell and stickiness of the bath.

"I want you to focus inward. Block out the smell and keep yourself focused on yourself. If you can achieve this and go through the entire way or fall asleep trying, I will reward you with sleeping upon my scales tomorrow night."

Kairi's eyes seemed to beam at the mention of sleeping on her scales, and it had been clear that she had become eager to try to attempt such a thing. "It will be difficult to manage, but I think I can do it." She shifted in the 'tub' a little bit, her arms moving up and down herself to try to spread it evenly on her skin. "Could you help me with my back?"

Pleased to know that Kairi had been gaining some form of independence with her tasks, the Milotic assisted in rubbing the juices along the unreachable part of her skin. She didn't speak as her fins rubbed it up and down all over to make sure it had been evenly distributed, keeping a gaze on Kairi as her thoughts had started to trail once more. Once she had made sure that Kairi had the juices all around her, Milotic receded her fins from the bath, flicking the juices off of them. Indeed, it looked amusing to see the human covered in this mixture from head to toe, but she knew that it would be a part of Kairi's training. And yet, there had been a nagging feel in the back of her mind during all of this. Once her tail had been fully cleaned, she spoke to the human once more.

"Now then, I want you to meditate, Kairi. Feel yourself fall into a self-induced trance. Block out all of the terrible smells that arise from this mixture. Look deep into your center, and relax." Her voice, which had been as soothing as ever, echoed in Kairi's mind with a tone that one could only describe as gentle. The water-type's head raised up away from the mixture, seeing her servant look towards her with a wondrous expression upon her face.

Knowing that this meant full concentration on her part, Kairi gave a small nod. "If you wish me to, then I will," she simply said, not minding the orders that the water-type had been giving her. Quietly slipping into the pool slightly, to where her mouth had been submerged, Kairi tried to find a good seated position to cross her legs. Once she did so, she remembered what the Fierce One had taught her earlier. Deep breaths came in through her nostrils, then exhaled through the same path as her eyes shut, a calmness already starting to come over her. Her breaths soon became steady, and within several minutes she had already entered the first stage.

The Milotic wandered over towards her friend, speaking to him soundly. "She seems to have great form. What did you do to already have her in such shape, Fierce One?" she inquired to her friend, who had been sitting patiently on Kairi's bed of leaves, legs crossed and arms back in order to recline casually.

"She actually could not hold the pose for some time this morning. It hadn't been until sunrise that she finally understood what I had been trying to teach her," he explained calmly to the water-type, looking over at Kairi for a fleeting moment before returning his gaze towards the Milotic. After the conversation that they had, he couldn't help but ponder more about Kairi. What had been so different from this one compared to the other trainers that both of them had met? That had been the single question that even he had trouble trying to figure out.

"I see. Then I suppose-" The Graceful One paused, noticing something about Kairi. Almost as if she had been concerned about her servant, she slithered over to the human, who seemed to be holding up well. Her eyes scanned the girl's face, Kairi's eyes being shut during her state, and after a moment a sigh of relief escaped the Milotic. "Asleep already…?"

"Did you expect any less? This had been the first day she woke up so early. She seemed half-asleep when I woke her up!" Laying down upon the leaves, paws behind his head, the Lucario stretched out his limbs, all while watching his friend prop Kairi up in the mixture to where her head had been clear above the surface of the murky bath. He never would have expected her to have a human in her presence for so long, but alongside the fact that she seemed concerned with the girl's safety had been something that the Fierce One never would have anticipated.

Once the Milotic made certain that Kairi could sleep without fearing going under the mixture, she returned to her pool of water, spraying off her fins once more before slipping into it. "But she must be taught properly. I will not have a servant who is not willing to wake up early to prepare for her training," she responded to her friend, who merely made a smile.

"Well she is your servant. Do as you think to make sure that she will become whatever you desire." With that, he let off a yawn, scratching his chest for a brief moment as he felt a nap coming along. "But for now, I suppose we can rest."

And rest they did. For four hours, almost precisely on the dot, Kairi sat in the mixture as she had the previous day. The Fierce One had been resting, his eyes shut but not quite asleep. However, the Graceful One had been pondering upon some things as she curled up in her pool, head submerged and unable to rest. She knew for a fact that the old Pokemon had vast knowledge of berry mixtures, having taught her long ago many of them. This had been the very same mixture that she used to keep her scales soft but also strong, and it seemed to do the same for Kairi. But why did she have this nagging feeling that something had been wrong with the mixture? When the four hours were up, she broke the water of her pool, slithering up to Kairi after she had slipped out of her own structure.

Looking at Kairi, she had hoped that the human would awaken first. The Milotic even contemplated on shooting water at Kairi, however that would be rude to do so without Kairi being aware. It had not been part of being graceful. "Awaken Kairi, your bath is over."

Kairi stirred from her peaceful sleep, looking up at her mistress with a small smile forming upon her face. She stood up in the mixture, but appeared surprised when her mistress had motioned to her to stay put. Immediately afterwards, the Milotic allowed her icy-cold water to douse her servant, along with cleaning out the tub. Several minutes of the high pressure water and everything that the berries touched had been cleansed. The tub had been cleaned to perfection, while Kairi seemed to resonate with another deep red hue, a sign that the mixture had been working.

Seeing her hands, and the resulting color, Kairi seemed to make a wider grin than before. Her heart raced and she had wanted to go and see her reflection once more. However, despite her eagerness to go and do so, she noticed her mistress looking at her in concern. "What is troubling you?"

"Kairi, climb out and stand on your feet."

Blinking once, Kairi wondered why her mistress would have such an unusual command for her. She felt fine, even rejuvenated. "If you want me to, I will," she replied quietly, stepping over the edges of the tub. Her feet planted soundly on the ground, and Kairi heard her mistress let off a sigh of relief. "What were you so worried about?" she started, stepping forward before a terrible pain welled up along the soles of her feet. Cringing, Kairi took another step forward, only to find that each step she took had been incredibly painful.

Looking stern, the Graceful One's worst fears had been realized. Watching Kairi cringe in pain with each step could only mean one thing. "Are you truly weak, or is it something else?" she muttered underneath her breath, taking her fin and reaching it towards Kairi's bare tummy. Seeing her giggle in response, she proceeded to wrap around Kairi's waist, only to find her continuing that action and trying to slip out, succeeding before letting off a wince of pain as she stepped back down onto the ground. "It is just as I was afraid of, perhaps this mixture isn't meant for human skin." She proved her point by lightly brushing Kairi's stomach, then along her left thigh, and then lightly under Kairi's arm, seeing the girl twitch with every movement that the Milotic made. "Stay still Kairi," she stated quietly, wrapping around Kairi's chest before lifting her off a few inches off of the ground, noticing how Kairi seemed to have a scarlet color flush across her face. This had been a disappointing turn of events; she had only wanted to make Kairi as beautiful as a human could be, but she didn't dare risk the chance of ruining her skin. Hoping to get a second opinion, she looked over at her companion, who watched them intently with a similar concern. "Would you mind lending your assistance, Fierce One? You need only to touch her and see if anything is wrong."

The Lucario paused, looking at his friend with hesitance. Touching a human? It had been one thing to unlock her beginning stages of aura, but this had seemed a bit concerning. Particularly with how his friend had been holding Kairi up in the air. Fortunately she appeared light enough to not cause any strain, and he stepped up to his feet. Without speaking, he walked towards Kairi, his eyes meeting with hers as she looked at him with a sort of awe. He stared at her skin, from her stomach down to her feet, feeling nervous as he did so, almost as if he had been afraid. As if sensing this, he heard the Graceful One speak to him.

"Touch her skin as you please. There is no need to gain permission from her."

No matter what transpired, she still treated Kairi like a servant, her own property to do with as she pleases. He understood this and nodded back towards the Graceful One, despite not sharing the same precise viewpoint as his friend. He looked up at Kairi's eyes once more, feeling a bit anxious at the way she looked at him. Without any hesitation, Lucario raised his paw and pressed it against Kairi's stomach, rubbing it around in soothing circles. Glowing with a hint of aura, he used this to effectively sense any sort of pain or sensitivity that her flesh had been having. Several seconds passed before he retracted his arm and turned towards the Milotic. "It doesn't feel like the skin is wearing apart. It just seems to be some sort of reaction to the mixture, some swelling underneath so to speak." Despite the calm response, Lucario had felt a bit flustered at that instant. He hated to admit it, but Kairi's skin had been incredibly soft and smooth to the touch. He kept his composure despite this thought, and that Kairi seemed to be a bit disappointed when he had stopped.

The Milotic seemed to pause, thinking about what she should do about this problem. At the very least her skin didn't have the possibility of wearing at all, and the swelling didn't seem to be noticeable in the slightest. She failed to notice that the Lucario moved his paw forward, seeing that there had been no harm in touching Kairi after sensing how happy she felt during it. Her fins wrapped around Kairi some more as she thought, keeping everything hidden underneath them. "While I am glad that she isn't going to be harmed, perhaps her body needs to get used to the mixture, or I need to change it to something else." She said this to her friend, virtually silent to Kairi. The only problem that remained had been Kairi's walking, for to have her cringe in pain at every step would be awful for a servant such as herself. As she contemplated about what to do, she removed her fins from Kairi's stomach. Even though she had been her servant, the Milotic enjoyed seeing Kairi happy.

While all this had been happening, Kairi's eyes flicked back and forth between the two of them as they silently spoke to each other. She wondered what they had been talking about, for even she had been concerned with the fact that her feet felt as if a rock had been a burning coal. "Mistress, what do you-" she started, before feeling Lucario's paw starting to rub her stomach again. Almost immediately she had begun to squirm a bit, a giggle escaping her. Her worries had escaped her, and they melted away as her sensitive skin made her even more ticklish than before.

In the back of his head, the Lucario felt that this had been wrong. However, with Kairi squirming and her infectious giggling getting to him, he felt compelled to keep making her happier. Difficult to remove himself, a smile forming on his face, he used both of his paws to gently rub them up and down the sides of her stomach. After several minutes of this, with Kairi's giggling getting weaker from how much it had tickled, she had been pulled up out of the Lucario's reach from the Milotic, who had decided a course of action.

Focusing her hypnosis on Kairi's vision, the Milotic spoke to her through telepathy. "I need you to relax, and submit to me. Allow me to help you, my servant." She saw how Kairi's reaction turned from glee due to the tickling to a more or less blank expression, her eyes becoming dull as the hypnosis quickly took effect. It always amazed the water-type on how quickly Kairi could fall underneath the trance. Keeping it up for several more minutes, making sure that she had been fully underneath the effects of her move, she gently moved forward as she spoke to Kairi.

"Listen well, Kairi. When you wake up from this trance, you will not feel any funny sensations on your feet or anywhere on your body. It will be as it was before." Setting her down along the wall of the cavern, the Milotic continued to speak. "You will be oblivious to these feelings, unless you desire to feel them." After finishing this initial command, she turned back to the Lucario, who had stood there with his arms crossed, as if watching this interchange between the two take place. "Fierce One, do you wish to make a recommendation for Kairi? Conditioning her in this state will be much easier for your training with her."

He dreaded this moment. He didn't take particular interest in her hypnosis move, as he felt that the only way to get stronger is to power through training. That had been how he got through his regiment when he had been a mere Riolu. Despite this, there had been one command that he would say to Kairi, something that would surely help her out. Stepping forward before crouching down to her level, he cupped her chin and spoke to her.

"Kairi. I understand that you probably will not fully remember this, but you must listen." He placed a paw on her stomach, circling around for a moment as he felt her small flame of aura dwindle within her very core. "If you are to train with me, I desire that you give it your all. Push yourself every day. When you think you can't do it, continue onward, even if it hurts you and you can't move. Each time you get hurt, it's motivation for the next time to not get hurt. Do you understand?" Receding his paw, he saw Kairi nod ever so slightly, before hearing her say something to him.

"Yes master, I will do as you say… " Kairi muttered to the Lucario, making a blush as she said so.

Just when things couldn't have gotten worse, Lucario gulped. The way she blushed only made him anxious, sensing her affection towards him. Oh how he wanted to push her away, out of this trance. This had been the reason he didn't take kindly to hypnosis; it always opened up the subconscious to the forefront of a person's mind. He made a quick glance towards Milotic, who only watched the two of them speak. Returning back to Kairi, he ruffled up her hair before standing up once more. "Good. I will leave you to your mistress now." Remaining composed, he turned his back to the two of them and walked back towards the bedding, always aware of the Milotic watching him carefully.

Oh how interesting this had been turning out, Milotic thought to herself. Underneath his training, Kairi would be stronger than most Pokemon, able to hold her own. However, she pondered upon how long this little relationship between them would last. Every human she had ever met always tore the seams between them and their Pokemon, abusing them and having no desire to care for their wellbeing. If she had been correct, Kairi would eventually break this one apart in a cruel manner. Knowing that the suggestions had been done, the Milotic slithered up to Kairi and lifted her up into her coils again. "You will be a good toy for your mistress, do you understand, servant?" Laughter had always been the best way to keep any Pokemon happy, and surely it had been no different for humans. The Milotic wanted Kairi to stay healthy, so it had been time for her to laugh while still having the effects of the berries under way. She rotated her coils around Kairi in a manner that got her every inch of her sides and stomach, not tightly squeezing her but giving her enough pressure to make the tickling sensations inside of her to grow.

When Kairi's laughter had grown and made her at ease, the Graceful One made a small smirk to herself. The hypnotic trance that she had induced had deepened, as proven by the somewhat glassy eyes that Kairi had at that instant. With this knowledge, she gently placed Kairi on the ground, prepping herself up as she motioned to her servant with her tail to capture her attention. "Now bow before me, and praise me," she stated calmly, showcasing her dominance over the human.

Kairi had begun to bow as she stood up, as she had done before, and although it was technically what her mistress had asked for, a sound slap of the fins resounded in the cavern. It had narrowly missed Kairi's feet by a few centimeters, but the cool air rushed over her toes nonetheless.

"On your hands and feet. And do your best to flatter me," the Milotic simply stated, having a calm expression on her face as she observed her servant as she got on her hands and knees. When Kairi dipped her head down near the floor, she could have beamed at the sight of this.

When Kairi had gotten into position, she praised her mistress soundly. "You're the most beautiful, compassionate, and graceful being!" she exclaimed, catching the attention of Lucario as he glanced over, before returning to his meditative position without even so much as a sound. Kairi looked up, a blush on her face as she had a drunken expression upon her. Her heart raced, and her mind seemed to swirl with euphoria and a faint dizziness.

 _This_ had been what the Milotic sought after. The kind of bow that made it seem as if Kairi had been worshipping a Pokemon. Her complete and utter submission to her, just as Pokemon did to their trainers. Those Pokemon were cowards that weren't even capable of fleeing the cruelty of their trainers, and worshipped them the same as Kairi did here, she believed. Taking her fin and rubbing it against Kairi's bare back, hard enough to not tickle, but soft enough to not hurt, she rewarded Kairi with this. "You are loyal, Kairi. For that, I will always provide for you, as long as you obey."

Shutting her eyes and keeping her position firmly, Kairi enjoyed the scratching of her back as she made a smile. "I-I will always remain loyal, mistress~" she mused, finding herself even more pleased than before as she felt the scratching stop. Sitting upright, wobbling a little in the process, Kairi seemed to be even worse than before in terms of the trance.

Taking her fins back, the Graceful One looked at Kairi curiously and asked her a question. "What would you like your mistress to give you, Kairi? Some time in my scales? Some more scratching?" she inquired, finding herself amused at this display that Kairi put on. But the moment Kairi seemed to look back towards the Lucario, who had been seated so quietly in the bedding of leaves, her heart felt torn a bit. She had thought that the idea of some time in her scales would be tempting for the human, especially in the trance, but perhaps there had been something she had underestimated; human curiosity. She grew bitter, but kept herself composed. "I see, so you wish to be with your master?" Pointing towards him with her fins, she stated to Kairi, "Crawl then."

Surprised that she had been allowed to indulge in her curiosity, Kairi wobbled as she crawled on all fours towards the Lucario, something that he had noticed immediately. He doubled his efforts to meditate, something that the Graceful One noticed as well. The scene had made the Milotic grow more and more curious, wondering what would happen. Her anger turned to curiosity, then to spite as Kairi wobbled over to the bedding, collapsing in a heap near the center, directly next to the Lucario.

Hearing Kairi collapsing near him, the Lucario opened his eyes and glared at her quickly. He saw her intoxicated look, the kind of which had been almost infectious. He would have had a smile upon his face if it wasn't for the situation, as he knew that Kairi didn't have the best control over herself in the hypnotic trance. "You're acting silly right now, Kairi," he stated through telepathy, seeing Kairi almost drag herself over before resting her head on his leg.

"T-That's ridiculous~ I'm perfectly fiiiiiine," Kairi stated, nuzzling his leg as she had a blush appear on her face. Her eyes shut, she enjoyed the sensation of all of this, even if the world had been spinning around her.

Without breaking his composure, he made a quick glance towards his friend, who had watched them carefully this entire time. Even though Kairi's hair and skin were incredibly soft, and they felt nice on his leg, he knew that this wasn't appropriate behavior for one that she called master. "Kairi, I want you to stop this. You're not acting right for a servant to the Graceful One."

His words merely bounced off of her in this state, and she sat upright, her body wobbling as she couldn't even keep her balance while sitting down. "Relaaaaax. Everything is okaaaay~" she said, giggling a bit before she nearly toppled forward, caught by the Lucario's paws as he helped her remain upright. Her eyes looked into his as he stared at her, and even in the trance she could tell that she had done something wrong.

"Kairi. _Stop_. I want you to wake up now," he said, starting to lose his patience with Kairi. The Lucario had to do everything he could to not sound upset with Kairi, especially because she had been making this silly advances towards him. His paws were on her shoulders, and he shifted his position to be directly in front of her.

"Wake up? But… I am awaaaake," Kairi groaned, her head starting to droop before she had been shaken a bit, jolting it back upright. She made a giggle, before there had been a small pain in her head. It was sharp and for a split-second, but it faded almost as quickly as it came.

It was humorous to say the least when she tried to imply that she was awake, but Lucario knew otherwise. He shot a glance towards the Milotic, asking her, "You're trying to test her, aren't you? Do you still think that humans are a threat, even in this state?!"

"Test…?"

The Lucario froze, and looked at Kairi quickly. He forgot; his aura can affect those he touched in direct contact. Once he breaks contact, they can't utilize the aura, but his paws were firmly on Kairi's shoulders. She could hear everything he said to her mistress. He saw Kairi beginning to wake up from the trance with this revelation, along with the pain starting to come back. Her mistress had been watching them, waiting to see what they would do. He didn't dare have Kairi suffer any trauma or have anything harm her, despite the fact that he harbored negative thoughts towards humans as well.

He gulped, before hugging Kairi close to him out of an act of desperation. The Lucario hugged her, allowing her head to rest on his shoulder as he shifted closer, making sure his body had made contact with hers as much as possible, if only to pull her back into the trance. "There, there. Relax. Your master is here now, Kairi. Go back to sleep, for now." Once Kairi made a sigh, shutting her eyes and feeling her falling back into the soothing trance, he made a sigh. Her emotions grew fonder of him within her trance, and his paws tightened around Kairi for a moment. He shifted her head more towards his chest as well, minding the spike, and wondered if letting things go unchecked would be the best course of action. Before he could ponder, he heard the Milotic speak to him.

"I trust Kairi more than I have any other human, Fierce One," she said to him, making sure that it would be a conversation only between her and him. "I don't trust the idea of humans and Pokemon working together… Let alone _love_ one another." Her thoughts were somewhat bitter in tone, having known this from past experience. "They abuse their Pokemon's trust. They treat them like slaves, exactly as how I treat that human that you are hugging right now. But I am much kinder compared to those humans."

Her thoughts were clear to him, and he knew what she would say next. It was a memory that they both shared, one that he desired to forget. "You remember the day that we encountered, Fierce One?"

Shutting his eyes, Lucario lowered his head, blocking the images in his head from rising up again. "Not all humans share the same cruelty, Graceful One." Looking down at Kairi, he shook her a little, seeing her sigh and shift her body, looking back up at him. "Kairi, can you hear me?" Seeing her nod in response, he let off a sigh of relief. Knowing that Kairi had been fine after the near breaking of the trance had been a weight taken off of his chest.

"You're so soft~" Kairi mused, feeling a bit feeling her master tighten his grip around her momentarily. Then, she was helped up to her feet by him, slightly wobbling but more at ease instead of outright intoxication. She remained standing while her master turned towards her mistress.

"I will take Kairi out for her training and teach her how to defend herself," he stated, feeling zealous that he could teach a human such a thing. Admittedly, when he held her close, the smell of the berry dye and the softness of both her hair and skin made him feel at peace. Lucario looked back towards Kairi, and let his paws go, seeing how she was able to stand on her own again.

Using his strength, he hoisted Kairi onto his back, having her legs wrap around his stomach and her arms around his shoulders, as he explained to her his instructions. "Kairi, when you hear me tell you to wake up, you shall do so," he started, already beginning to make his way towards the entrance of the cavern. "Before that, I want you to stay asleep, alright?"

"Alright, masteeeeer." Kairi let off a yawn, already feeling particularly sleepy after the escapade in her trance. She made a weak smile, and rested her head on his shoulder once more, as she did before. Their movements were quick through the tropical foliage, and when Kairi awoke it would be under the blue skies above them.


	8. Chapter VII

"… Kairi, it is time to wake up now."

The Lucario gently placed Kairi flat on her back on the softer part of the stream, where there were no stones but instead a smooth, soft bunker of sand. He hadn't been sure whether or not she would awaken from her little slumber, and contemplated on waking her up with a small splash of cool water to the face. But when Kairi began to stir once more, his doubts dissipated into the back of his mind.

Kairi found herself having a little bit of a headache after what had occurred a little bit ago. She opened her eyes, seeing the skies above and feeling the sand underneath her. A groan escaped her and she sat upright, leaning forward as a sort of sickness came over her. She knew where she had been, and yet there were a few questions that immediately popped into her head, the first being, "How did I get all the way out here?" She sounded a bit on the fatigued side of things, but didn't feel her body ache in the slightest.

With a smile, the Lucario sat before Kairi, crossing his legs and placing his paws upon them. "I carried you out here. Don't worry about what happened, your mistress put you into a light trance."

"Trance?" Kairi wondered what this meant, and had to get readjusted to having control over her body once more. She wobbled a little as she sat, but overall had a good sense of her bearings once more. "What did my mistress do to me? I feel… sick."

Finding himself hesitating to tell her precisely what had happened, the Lucario instead brushed the question underneath the rug and spoke to her on a different matter. "Now is not the time to ask that. Now come on, stand up. Get the blood flowing in your body, and then we can start our lesson."

"Two lessons in one day?" Kairi stated, helping herself back up onto her feet before her master interrupted her.

"Three, if you count what your mistress wants you to do later." He watched as Kairi stood on her bare feet, seeing the nude human stand before him, fidgeting with her arms and legs to get readjusted. After a minute, as he remained silent, he contemplated on what he wanted to do to begin their lesson. Then, after several moments, he took a swift stance, placing his feet down into the ground to get a firm stance. His paw, clenched into a fist, quickly thrust at Kairi, stopping only centimeters away from her face.

Naturally, her hands were raised up to try to stop the blow, shielding her face as effectively as they were capable of. Kairi's eyes were shut, waiting for the pain to come, but when it didn't she lowered her hands, looking at the Lucario in a bit of disbelief. She found herself making a sigh of relief, slowly lowering her hands down to her chest.

Lucario's punch did not falter, as his arm remained firm and steady in front of Kairi's view. Truthfully, he had been surprised that the human had been able to cover her face in time, and yet he knew it wouldn't be enough to protect her. "Good. You're able to react as quickly as I had hoped," he stated, satisfied with the result but kept his seriousness with him. "But you can never hope to defend yourself by leaving your body defenseless." His paws quickly jabbed Kairi in several spots to prove his point. Poking her stomach, the sides of her body that had been exposed with her arms up in the air, and her hips as well.

At the jabs, Kairi began to vaguely understand what exactly the Lucario had been getting at with what he had said. Her hands were quick to cover her stomach, hoping that this would deter the Lucario to cease the jabs.

To further prove his point, the Lucario took the opening that Kairi made and threw another punch directly towards her. He adjusted his paw so that the spike had been zooming towards her, and he ceased the attack when he had been a mere centimeter away from her neck. If he so desired, he could have stabbed Kairi in the neck and slain her, but this wouldn't be the intention of this lesson. Perhaps Kairi still needed to wake up after being awoken from a trance.

"There is much I need to teach you, Kairi. But as my student, I will not go easy on you. I can guarantee you that much," he stated, patting the side of Kairi's face to help her wake up some more. "If you cannot keep up with me, you won't last another day in this forest. Do you understand?" he told her sternly, stepping back as she allowed her to wake up some more.

Blinking, the pat doing much to wake her up, Kairi made a gulp as she heard the Lucario speak to her in this manner. Nodding in acknowledgement, she knew that she had much to learn, but now she knew that, if he truly wanted to, the Lucario could easily kill her with a simple movement. It was this realization that made her both wake up and also to think about how she should take training seriously.

Now that she had been awake, the Lucario decided to have her try to use her fist. It would be effective in teaching her the three basics of fighting: dodging, blocking or countering. He closed the distance between the two, and spoke. "Kairi, I want you to punch me, anywhere you want. I don't want you to hold back. This is important for your training."

"What?" Kairi could tell that he was serious, but she wasn't sure how exactly to go about doing this. She hadn't been particularly keen on violence, even before she lost her memories to the Graceful One, and yet she had to do this. "Well if you say so," she simply said, clenching her fist and stepping forward, throwing a punch at him directly on the chest. The impact hadn't been anything, in fact it felt like nothing at all.

Despite his relief that it had missed the spike, having hit directly below it, the Lucario glared at Kairi, the afternoon sun casting a shadow on his face that only furthered the look. "I said _punch me!_ What kind of fool throws punches like that?!" he shouted, making Kairi flinch back, her fist still planted on his chest.

"B-But that was my best!" Kairi exclaimed, despite knowing it to be not true. Her heart sank, feeling as if she had disappointed him to an utmost degree. She felt his paws clasp around her fist, the Fierce One holding it firmly as he spoke to her once more.

"Don't hesitate. Hesitation will only hold you back and get you killed when the moment comes to fight for your life." He let go of her fist for the time being, and bowed his head in response. "Now then, I want you to punch me with everything you have. I won't be hurt, don't worry about that. Do you understand what exactly I'm directing you to do?"

"I understand, master." Kairi bowed her head as well, noticing that he did so. She thought it was a sort of customary motion that Lucarios had to respect one another. Or perhaps it had been something that only he did. She wasn't one to judge at all. When she looked up, one could see the realization in her eyes of the task at hand. Taking her fist back, Kairi made a soft, "Hyah!" as she threw a punch, this time directed towards her master's face.

' _Much better,'_ the canine master thought as he saw how Kairi's punch had been thrown. He had a grin appear on his face as his paw made contact with her fist, catching it soundly as it stopped dead in its tracks. "Now try to hit me again. You still have another fist you can make."

With a nod, Kairi took her other hand and threw another punch at the Lucario, hoping to make it connect with him in one way or another. She aimed for his shoulder, trying to make it as fast of a punch as possible.

The blue flame of aura appeared around Lucario as quickly as it could, making his student's eyes widen. He caught her other fist, both of her arms extended towards him as he now had both of her fists firmly in his grasp. A second later, he twisted her body around and placed her on the ground, a small cloud of dusting billowing out from underneath the dirt patch that they were on. He pinned one arm to the ground, and the other had been wrapped behind her back. Lucario's knee had been pressed against the base of her spine, directly above her rear, as he tugged lightly to make sure that Kairi couldn't move in the slightest. With her in this position, he spoke to her directly.

"There is a lot we have to cover, but if you are dedicated, you will improve in no time at all." He felt Kairi shift a little bit underneath his grasp, only resulting in him tightening his grasp. "Your punches will snap a tree in two. You will move before your enemy can even blink. You will strike before the enemy knows you're there. All of this I can teach you, starting today, Kairi."

Listening to this, Kairi didn't feel nearly as unhappy at this turn of events. She knew that this had only been the first day of training, and yet the difference between her and the Fierce One had been staggering. Kairi envisioned herself doing these tasks, and it filled her with a renewed sense of determination. A small laugh managed to escape her. "I do have a lot to learn, master. But if you're willing to be my teacher, then I am willing to be your student." Her optimism could be seen by anyone who saw this sight, and Kairi, who felt that she had been still pinned down firmly, tried to look up at him. "A-Also, could you let me up please?" she said in a softer voice, surprisingly so despite her position.

He could feel his cheeks grow warmer from blushing, finding it rather cute that Kairi requested such a thing in a sincere, and adorable, tone. Lifting his knee off of her, he let go of Kairi's arms and used his paws underneath her arms to lift her back up onto her feet. His feet carried him to her front, about to resume the next piece of training that she needed.

"Do you remember that punch from earlier, Kairi?" he asked her calmly, standing in front of the human with his eyes gazing upon her. When she nodded, he clenched his paw and slowly moved his arm until the paw was an inch from Kairi's nose. "If you wanted to stop this punch, what would you do?"

Seeing how he positioned the paw, Kairi had a thought cross her mind. Slowly, her hand raised to try to place itself between her and the paw, thinking that it could deflect the blow. "I would do this, right?"

"Do you think that's a wise choice?" The canine pushed against Kairi's hand as he followed through with the punch. It was not enough to hurt her, but it would cause her to fall on her back. Either she kept her hand weak and let it hit her face, or she kept it strong but still forcing her on her back. Either way, he would be showing her the flaw of her choice.

Stumbling, having kept her hand strong, Kairi fell onto the cold ground, feeling the pebbles press up against her. She was somewhat surprised that she fell, and she felt the Lucario's foot press against her stomach, seeing him lean against her. "W-What did-"

"If you can't tell how strong your opponent is, what do you have to gain from holding your hand up like that?" He demonstrated his position by lightly jabbing her all over, giving her a look at what could happen. "If your enemy knocks you prone, they have the advantage, and can hurt you as they please."

Gulping, Kairi quickly realized that she had much to learn from this Lucario. He knew far more about this than she had first anticipated, not to mention the many ways that she could be hurt if she had been pushed into a position to fight back. But her attitude perked up, undaunted by the fact that she had been pushed down onto the ground twice. Feeling him get off her, she grabbed his paw that he had offered and was helped up onto her feet. "Alright, so how would I be able to block it?" she asked him curiously, hoping that he would show her the right maneuver to do so.

Lucario dusted off Kairi's shoulders before he continued, hearing her question. "Catching a punch with your hand requires strength that you haven't developed yet, so I am going to teach you a different way to do it." Grabbing Kairi's arm lightly, he looked at her for a moment and swiveled it up slowly. He moved it from side to side, then straight up. "You can use their own movements against them. If you move like this at the proper time, you can deflect the punch instead of trying to catch it.

"Now let's do it again."

Lucario let go of Kairi's arm, and staged a motion for a slow punch towards her face once more. As Kairi tried to comprehend how to do it, she stuck her arm up straight again, only to have him grasp her arm once more.

"You need to _deflect_ the punch, not catch it." He moved her arm again, trying to get her to remember the kinetic motion. "If I'm going to punch you with the intention to kill, your arm will be shattered, and then what will happen? You'll be crippled for the rest of the battle." A thought crossed his mind, and perhaps he thought that it would be better for them to demonstrate. "Here, watch."

He pushed the punch into the vicinity of the arm, which he then used Kairi's arm to push the paw up as it got closer to her. He finished and pulled through, sending his paw past her head. Lucario saw Kairi's eyes examine every motion, a brightness to them as the moment came to her. "Do you understand now? There's no need to absorb a punch if it isn't necessary. Now try again."

Lucario took his paw and moved it towards Kairi once more, this time without aiding her hand. He was about to be pleased, until he noticed the stance she took. He instead lowered his paw and pressed gently against her stomach to knock her down again. Truthfully, it pained him to knock her down so many times during this lesson, but it was necessary. Muscle memory was the best kind of method of retaining information, as his mentor had once said to him. "You'll have to work on your stance as well. Your enemy isn't the only one that can be manipulated. They can manipulate you if you're not careful, Kairi."

A huff escaped Kairi, surprised that she had fallen over so easily this time around. How many more times was she going to be knocked around? She had been somewhat annoyed, but tried to hide it in her tone. "Is there anything else I _should_ work on?"

Lucario helped her back up from her fall, a bit torn that she had been disheartened from her constant falls. But that was to be expected for someone who probably didn't have much physical training to begin with. "Yes. I noticed that you're too eager to start without properly thinking things through. You need to work on your attitude. You can't become strong if your dedication is weak, just as you wouldn't run into a cave without first preparing.

"Here, let me show you what stance you should go for."

He motioned for Kairi to straighten up, and then used his paws to adjust her little by little. Hips a bit lower to the ground (to anchor her stance), and a proper placement of the legs to help cement herself down. "If you need to protect yourself," he started, before pointing over to the boulders. "You must be like those two boulders. Rooted, unmovable, strong."

Finally, everything made sense to Kairi. The deflecting of the punch and what he had been trying to get across; why she kept falling down every time he so much as poked her. The boulders had been impossible to move, and he had a fair point. She lowered her head, smiling as a pleasant feeling crossed her. "Alright, I understand now," she said, encouraged by these thoughts that she had been having. Finally, she prepared a defensive stance, ready to begin training fully. "I'm ready!", she proclaimed, feeling re-energized.

Seeing the attitude that he had been looking for in his human student, Lucario smiled as she got ready for a few basic punches. If Kairi were more experienced in fighting, Lucario would have loved to spar with her on the spot, to have a proper fight with her. The attitude he was witnessing made him all excited.

Throwing a few light punches towards her face, he saw how she used her arm to deflect his paws from making contact to her face. Admittedly, he was more than impressed at the new vigor that she had gained. Even she seemed amazed that she went through the motions so fluidly, as her face lit up even more than before.

After a few moments, Kairi had exclaimed, "Master, I-I'm doing it!"

Chuckling, Lucario kept throwing punches towards her face. "You're doing well," he said to her through telepathy. "This is only to block your face. I have many other blocks to teach you."

The next hour of the day constituted was spent teaching Kairi how and when to block to stay protected. He showed her how to block from the side, bottom, and from above. The four usual points where fighting-types look for openings, especially in spars with one another. As Kairi finished up the last block, he clapped his paws, said he would be back, and within a minute he returned with two Oran berries. He seated himself beside the boulder, and patted the spot next to him for his student, inviting her to eat with him.

As soon as Kairi sat down, he passed the berry to her. She felt a sense of relief well up in her, pleased to know that he seemed as enthusiastic about training her as she felt about learning all of this. "Thanks for teaching me, master," she said, her tone different from the disgruntled nature earlier.

Crossing his legs, Lucario allowed Kairi to move closer to him. He could feel the sun on his fur, and it felt rather nice. It had been a while since he sunbathed, now that he thought about it. He used to do it as a Riolu all the time when he wasn't training, but now that he was older, too many responsibilities sprung up. He heard Kairi, his ears flicking momentarily as he gave her a warm smile. "You're welcome, Kairi. Now eat. We have more training to do before the Graceful One gives you more lessons."

Kairi couldn't exactly explain why she seemed so happy towards the Lucario as he spoke. It had been something that was difficult to state, let alone consider, but she took a bite of the berry, feeling a little bit of juice run down her lips. After she rubbed them clean, she continued to eat. This one seemed familiar, as it looked like one her mistress had taught her when they had first met. "Does this one make me stronger?"

"What?" Lucario had been confused by her question, finding himself not quite knowing how to answer momentarily. "Any food will make your stronger, Kairi." He bit into the berry that he held, and swallowed it before continuing to talk with her. Then, a thought struck him. Yes, she had asked about something earlier, something that he knew that her mistress wouldn't particularly enjoy to talk about. He had a slow movement, thinking before he spoke. Finally, he asked Kairi, "Do you remember asking how the Graceful One and I met each other?"

Taking another bite, Kairi heard him ask this. She had been about to speak, but swallowed it down first before replying, "I do remember. You guys seemed weird about it."

"It wasn't appropriate at the time," he shot back sharply, not even giving a moment to consider what she said. "We never told this story to anyone, and I think your mistress would be upset if I told it to you, because it reveals too much about her personality."

Another bite, another silent moment. He looked back at Kairi, thinking back to the humans that they had met before. None of them were pleasant, and neither of them could say they had the pleasure of being with them, but something struck him differently about Kairi. He thought she reminded him a little about himself when he was growing up. Naïve, energetic, and a determination to please her superiors.

Or perhaps it was Milotic's attack on her mind, thus shattering it, that made Kairi less of a human trainer. Or maybe there were always good humans this entire time. Instead of thinking like Milotic, he let it slip his mind as his paw rested on Kairi's opposite shoulder. "The Graceful One was not always as beautiful as she was now, did you know this?"

Kairi's face had now showed a bit of intrigue at this. Even though, she had to admit, the Milotic seemed familiar, she struggled to remember if they looked any different before. But she gave up. Everything before that day she met her mistress had been an empty blackness. It made her head hurt trying to think about it. She rubbed her head, and shook her head. "No. I thought she was always like that. From the way she talks about it, I can't imagine she was anything different before."

Lucario could feel Kairi's mind hurt for a moment. He winced, knowing that trying to recover forcibly repressed memories could lead to undesired effects. He shut his eyes, and remembered the past with him and the Graceful One fondly. He could smell the rain and feel the dampness on his fur from their first meeting. It was a strong memory, one that he committed to heart.

"The Graceful One didn't always have beauty. Yet she did have much grave for such a lonely creature in the river by herself." He looked back at Kairi, the memory coming full circle. "Your mistress wanted to be beautiful, as you yourself wish to be. I would sit by the riverside, and listen to the Graceful One tell me of her dreams to be beautiful, and everything she tried to do to achieve beauty."

She couldn't contain it anymore. Her curiosity about what her mistress looked like before she had been a beautiful Milotic. She pressed Lucario, her face having a wide smile on it. "What did my mistress look like?", she inquired, leaning into him as her shoulder rubbed up against his. "Was she a smaller Milotic, or something else?"

The canine couldn't help but blush every time Kairi looked at him with that smile, while her soft skin, now softer from the berries, pressed against his fur. Lucario wasn't sure how long he would be able to last with Kairi advancing on him as she did. He politely turned away to avoid confrontation with the adorable look his student was giving him.

Was he being too nice to her? Or was her personality like this after wiping her memories? It troubled him, but either way he hadn't been complaining. "N-Not exactly. Um, how should I put this?" Lucario's thoughts now turned to thinking of a way to lessen the blow to her pride. But, no matter what he did, any attempt failed. He sighed. "She was a Feebas. A brown-scaled fish…"

"Fee. Bas?" Kairi tried to think of what it was that he was describing, but she couldn't even properly think of it. The color brown, though, was enough to send shivers down her spine. There could be no way that her mistress was that. The beautiful, prismatic scales were enough to make her doubt this. Yet as she saw the look on the Lucario's face, she knew that he had been telling the truth.

He could feel her emotions, and nodded slowly to acknowledge what Kairi had been saying. A Feebas wasn't the spinning image of beauty, yet he knew the Graceful One far more than Kairi ever could, and thus couldn't bring himself to agree with Kairi. Despite what he had said, he knew one thing was true: her personality never changed. Always cold, distant, and bitter towards humans.

"Beauty… is not always what we see on the outside," he commented, remembering what his friend had said to him all those years ago.

"A Feebas is a rare fish, and incredibly hard to find. There are those that find Feebas to be repugnant, while others are pleased to find one, knowing of the true potential they have." He ate the last of his berry, placing it in his mouth before thoroughly chewing it. Once he swallowed it down, he continued. "How the Graceful One and I met those many years ago is something I will never understand. It seemed that fate had brought us together after-

"That's enough for now though." He stopped abruptly, standing up as he realized what he had been about to say. The story was unpleasant, downright traumatizing to him, and it made him anxious to even dive back that far into his memories. Sometimes, he wished that he could forget such things. In this way, he envied Kairi. Yet at the same time, it was because of the fact that Kairi's mind had been changed by the serpent that he stopped, unsure of whether talking about other humans would be healthy to Kairi's ears. However, he hated to disappoint an avid listener, but he decided it was best to place the story on hold. An idea struck him, and he knew that he could use it as leverage for his student.

"If you learn to communicate with your aura, I'll tell you a little more about the Graceful One. For now, we must continue our training." Giving Kairi a calm pat on the back, he stood up to teach her more about fighting. "For your final lesson today, I'm going to teach you how to punch. If you do well today, maybe I can show you how to use your aura in combat tomorrow. But that's a big maybe, as you're still new to this. Improper use can be dangerous."

A bit disappointed that she couldn't hear more of the story, as it was something that had peaked her interest and burned her curiosity, Kairi managed to perk up when he mentioned the possibility of training with aura. She understood that she was relatively new to it, but if she had gotten a head start that would be something she looked forward to. "Oh! That'd be awes-" She paused, before clearing her throat. "I mean, that'd be great." She stood up, brushing herself off as she finished off the berry that he had given her.

Lucario didn't want Kairi to hold back any longer, and he began as soon as she stood up. "First, I want to see you throw a punch towards me. I want to help you throw a punch correctly," he explained to her, stepping in front of her as he stared. "Do not be afraid of holding back. I can defend myself against you. Use your full strength against me like I was the Swellow from before."

This had been a particularly odd request. Kairi never expected to be _asked_ to punch her teacher, let alone the Lucario. However, she didn't doubt him, and yet there had been a sort of hesitation in her. She clenched her hand into a fist and punched, trying her best to put every ounce of power into it.

With a smooth motion, Lucario stepped to the side in an instant, his paw grasping her wrist and pulling her off balance, sending her falling to the ground again as she moved behind him. He knew that he had been well in control of the situation, and thus he had no need to block the human girl's punch. Instead, there had been something else he wanted to teach.

"Next, I will teach you how to punch properly."

He watched as Kairi got back up, brushing off the dust that had collected on her front. He knew that it would take more than a week, possibly longer, for Kairi to be capable of defending herself from Pokemon that wished to prey on her. Sparring as equals would take a significantly longer time than he would have planned for. It was an unusual request, but he never expected his friendly visit to his old friend to end with him training a human to fight like a Pokemon.

It had been originally out of respect for the serpent that he accepted the task of training Kairi to fend for herself. But even after the short time that he had known her, his feelings were a little different now. As he saw Kairi pipe up and give him enthusiasm on learning how to punch properly, her will undaunted from her dedication, he could feel something between him and the young human. A bond had been growing into something bigger than he had first conceived, and with her eagerness to learn it had only made it more clear.

To make matters more interesting, her natural charm (which he had not been sure had always been there or whether the Milotic hammered it into her) left him speechless at times. Could it be possible for a Pokemon and a human to connect like this? The thought both disturbed and intrigued him.

"Very well, only if you're able to keep up," he said in response to her eagerness, beaming towards her with delight. He had to admit, it was a nice feeling to have a student that was so willing to try out new things. Lucario moved forward and helped his student get into a defensive stance like he had taught her. "Always remember that your stance is very important, even when you choose to fight." He used his paws to straighten her arm out and teach her more. "If you put too much power into your punches, your stance will become weak, and you will be easier to control. It may be necessary at times to sacrifice one for the other, but only after you master the basics."

At this, Kairi piped up again. "So a strong punch has to have a good stance then?"

Lucario knew he had a lot to teach Kairi before he could help the girl move up in her training. To demonstrate what he had meant, he helped the human into a sturdy stance and lifted her arm out in front of her. "Precisely. A strong stance should always come first before a strong punch."

With his student in a proper stance, he tugged lightly on her arm to demonstrate how difficult it was for her to move from the spot. "Do you see?" A strong stance with a strong punch will not weaken your defenses." He pulled her arm out a little more with cautious, seeing Kairi teeter and having to adjust her feet as she hopped a bit. "If you overextend your punch, you can be left defenseless." Then, Kairi fell to the ground again for his demonstration. "Do you understand, Kairi?"

A huff escaped Kairi, a bit sore from being dropped on the ground so often today. But she had to persevere, otherwise who knew that her mistress would do if she had become negative. "I-I see," she said, her voice wavered as she helped herself back up to her feet. "So, strong stance and a strong punch, right?", Kairi repeated, walking back towards the Lucario as she grasped the concepts of what he had been telling her about.

"Yes, that is exactly what I mean, to start off with at least." He gave an approving nod and stood back to watch Kairi, getting himself in striking range of his student. "Remember, you need to understand the basics before you can learn the more difficult areas. Many of the rules can be broken over time, but only once you master the basics. Now. Punch."

Feeling confidence swell up in her chest, Kairi didn't say a word, getting ready as she felt like she understood everything. Legs in the right position, a sturdy grip on the ground. Kairi let out a small yelp as she quickly sent a punch the Lucario's way.

It seemed like a split-second, perhaps because it had been second-nature to the Lucario. But once Kairi could barely come within several inches of his nose, his paw had flashed into view and stopped her attack, gripping over her fist with ease. His eyes stared intensely at Kairi, looking into those chocolate-brown eyes of hers, before a smile flashed across his face. She had impressed him with her determination, not to mention that the punch wasn't half-bad either. He pushed the fist back, feeling pleased with the knowledge of Kairi getting better. She showed a lot of promise.

"That will be all for today. You may take a short break before we head back."

He patted the top of Kairi's head before springing up onto the higher of the two boulders, going into meditation almost seamlessly.

Kairi saw the Lucario almost, seamlessly without effort, leap onto the boulder. She took a moment to look around, about to consider maybe fetching a berry or two for them, but then a question popped up in her mind. "Master!", she exclaimed, knowing that she had been disrupting his meditation.

It hadn't even been twenty seconds after he began to meditate, and normally he would have been upset with someone interrupting him. But he made sure to leave himself available for Kairi to ask him any questions. He could feel her emotions, and knew that the only thing on her mind was him alone. Was this a test? Could Milotic really be putting them to see if it was possible for a Pokemon and a human to fall in love? He desired no part of it. It was cruel, not to mention unusual, but it was impossible for him to deny that he had been interested in her.

He never broke his meditation, but he asked Kairi, "What is it?"

Wincing at his tone, as it had taken a slightly more authoritative tone towards her, she wondered whether she should ask him the question that had been bugging her.

However, despite her not saying anything, Lucario already had a feeling about what it was that Kairi wanted to ask him. He had already said to her before, about how he would tell her more about her mistress once she learned how to communicate through aura, but perhaps that wasn't enough to discourage her from asking. He didn't want to give her a blunt 'no,' so instead he put an interesting spin on it.

"Tell you what, Kairi. I can tell that you seem rather curious about the Graceful One. If you can ever land a blow on me in a fair fight, I'll tell you everything you want about your mistress. Until then, the rest will have to wait until tomorrow. Is there anything else you need, Kairi?"

"I suppose a berry sounds nice."

Kairi had been perfectly capable of getting the berry on her own. Lucario wondered if she had been getting a bit complacent, but attributed it to how weak she was to predators that wanted to kill her. It was necessary, he felt, it retrieve the berry for her. In mere seconds, he had leapt off the boulder, disappeared in one of the branches of a nearby tree, and returned with a berry. Its appearance had been pink and rather curved.

"This is a Mago berry," he explained to Kairi, handing it to her politely, his eyes still having some sort of fascination with her beauty. "The more curved it is, the sweeter it becomes."

Pleased with him grabbing her a berry, she kindly returned the favor back with a soft, "Thanks!" She quickly bit into the berry, noticing how firm it was alongside the very sweet taste that it had. There had also been a different taste, one that intrigued Kairi but couldn't place what it was. "Shall we walk back then?"

With his agreement, they walked alongside each other, back to the cavern that her mistress had rested in. All this while, Kairi tried to prod the Lucario for more questions about her mistress, but had only received blunt answers in his effort to discourage her from asking too many questions about it. She had eaten a majority of the berry, admiring its taste, but still having that strange flavor that never seemed to escape her.

Yet the more she ate, the more her mouth became dry. It sucked away all the moisture in her mouth, and she looked over at her master, her eyes becoming unfocused. At times, he would be a visible canine, while other times he had been a blue blur. Her heart raced, and she tried to speak but nothing came out. It wouldn't be until she stumbled, clenching her stomach that she had his attention.

He had felt the distress build up in her, and he saw Kairi collapse onto her knees, clenching her stomach. Without a moment's notice, he kneeled down in front of her and held her up with his paws on her shoulders. That berry should have only been a Mago, it wasn't supposed to poison her or anything like that. "Kairi? What's wrong?!"

As Kairi looked up at the Lucario, she didn't appear to be in a healthy state of mind either. She had a blank look on her face, but a smile (or an attempt at one) crossed her when he asked. "N-Nothing's wrong." One of her hands reached out for him, but completely missed his shoulder by several inches to the right. "W-What's wrong with you? Did you get smaller?"

Now she was questioning him about what was wrong? "That should be my line, Kairi," he simply uttered, noticing how, even when she was kneeling, her body was swaying loosely like she had been intoxicated. He helped her up, had her take a few steps, only to see her wobble and almost collapse into a heap if he hadn't held her up.

Then, the realization struck him. _She was incompatible with a Mago berry._ He knew that some berries, if it conflicted with the personality and nature of the Pokemon, caused confusion, even after it healed them. He swatted the berry out of her hand, making sure she had no access to it. Gently, he forced Kairi back to her knees, his paws always on her shoulders.

"Kairi, listen to me. We should rest here a little before going back? Don't you agree?"

Kairi felt her stomach feel all strange. Her legs were all wobbly, unable to hold her weight. She could hear something else penetrate her hearing. Lucario's voice seemed drowned out as something… no, _someone's_ voice seemed to reach piercing notes. Her entire body began to shiver, a fear crossing her that she hadn't felt in quite some time. Not even the moment she awoke before her mistress had made her feel so violated.

"N-No! Leave me alone!", Kairi shouted out, quickly arching forward as she covered her head. The voice had been screaming at her, telling the girl that she had been worthless, that nobody cared for her after what had happened.

"Kairi!" Lucario helped to prod Kairi back up, firmly placing his paws on her shoulders as he saw her having tears stream down her face. His heart sank. Did he scare her in this state? Was the confusion that terrible to humans? She shook her head, but he did his best to maintain eye contact with her. "Kairi! Look at me! I'm here, right? You're alright!"

Then, it happened. Kairi felt pain all over. Her hands were quick to move to several spots along her arms, feeling as if someone had punched her along those sides. At first, she rubbed them, then once it had gotten unbearable, she started to scratch herself.

His fur stood up on end as he saw Kairi dig her fingernails into her skin. He felt the pain that she had been feeling, but had no context for it. It seemed to come out of nowhere. He couldn't allow her to hurt herself, and so he quickly pushed her onto her back, straddling her on her stomach as he clutched her wrists. Already her arms looked as if they had been heavily scratched. What on earth could be happening to her?

"Kairi?! What's wrong?!", he shouted, trying to break through the confusion and get to her. Lucario saw her shifting underneath him, and the pain seemed to intensify. Lucario shut his eyes, trying to block out her disgruntled noises and the pain he felt, trying to find some peace of mind to figure out the best solution to the problem.

There was one solution, but even he didn't like the thought of it. There were other options, but time was running out before Kairi could have gone berserk and injured herself in his grip. In a split-second, Lucario let go of one of her wrists and used the free paw to gave Kairi a swift jab in the stomach, seeing the air getting knocked out of her.

He saw her groan, struggling to breathe for a moment as he let go of her, temporarily halting the urge to scratch herself. Her eyes had been blank, but filled with the sheer confusion of what had been going on. The Lucario felt incredibly guilty for what he had done, knowing that it temporarily paralyzed her and bought him time, but still feeling enormously upset. _He_ wasn't the Graceful One. Even as Kairi curled up into a ball, gasping and holding her stomach, he feared about his student's state of mind.

Quickly, he ran, leaping into the foliage as he searched for a cure for her confusion. He had to find a Persim Berry, which he knew had the counter to Kairi's status.

" _Get over here!"_

" _Come back here and talk to me in a proper tone!"_

" _You're worthless, Kairi. You're worse than-"_

The voice had seemed incredibly familiar, and all it did had been telling Kairi how much she had been a nuisance and terrible. By the time Lucario had returned, Kairi had been reduced into an incredibly anxious state, sobbing and crying as the pain welled up all around her. She had been muttering to make it stop, which only served to make Lucario feel even more guilty about what he had done. Crouching down to Kairi, he unraveled her and forced her to drink the juice as he squeezed the berry. While he anticipated the berry's effects, he began to think about his dislike for humans.

If Milotic had her way, the entire would be without a single human, and Lucario almost shared the same view, though he was more pacifistic than one with such grace. It was ironic considering the names they gave each other. Yet, when punching Kairi in the stomach to help her, this feeling of guilt had become almost impossible to shake off.

It had been about a minute or two as Lucario sat there, watching Kairi's state improve. He could feel her pain starting to fade and her discomfort going away. His thoughts drifted back to how she had behaved earlier. Had she already developed an attachment to, not only him, but the Milotic as well? It confused him so. She even managed to make his friend embarrassed when he had first arrived, something that was difficult to do.

When Kairi had began to recover herself, a smile appeared on Lucario's face. "Hey there," he said, patting her cheek to get her to wake up faster. He didn't want to say anything about what she had meant earlier, fearing that it could have been something from the recesses of her mind. When they managed to lock eyes, he could see that the confusion had lifted, and felt even more relieved with this turn of events. "I'm glad you're okay. You had me worried there. It seems I misjudged the berry I gave you."

Appearing dazed by all of this, Kairi looked up at the Lucario, feeling something that she couldn't exactly describe. Taking her hand and rubbing her forehead, noticing that her head had began to hurt, she couldn't help but ask, "What exactly happened? Everything hurts."

"It's better if you don't remember, Kairi. It's a pain you don't want to relive." Further relief spread all along him. It seemed she was okay for the moment, and he was glad that no real harm came to her. "Here, let me help you feel better."

Taking his paw, making it glow with the power of aura, he rubbed it across Kairi's flat stomach to help some of the pain go away. He would ask where else it hurt, and Kairi answered, and thus got a good rubbing in spots that were sore. Perhaps he realized, at some point, that Kairi had stopped hurting and just wanted him to massage her. Maybe he let her do this because of his guilt. It was hard to say.

After he had been done, Kairi shut her eyes and gave a content smile. "Thanks." When his arm had come towards her shoulder again, she nuzzled it lightly, relieved to know that she had someone to depend on, whether it be her mistress or the Fierce One.

Lucario gave a blush, or he would have without fur, when Kairi nuzzled his arm affectionately after using his aura to make her pain wash away. He still wasn't used to seeing such a cheerful expression from a human, especially towards himself. There was something there in Kairi's emotion that he never felt in his lifetime, and it was making the canine feel happier to see Kairi expressing it so freely. In a way, he almost envied the girl, because there was a part of him that wanted these emotions too.

Then, a thought struck him. He glanced up at the sky, noticing how it was getting late. Soon it would be evening, and then night, a time where Kairi would be most vulnerable. But what concerned him more had been how her mistress had training planned for Kairi. However, the guilt from before had stopped him from simply running with her back to the cavern. Most of all, he wanted to see Kairi acting so cheerful, if only for a few minutes longer.

"Kairi," he said to her, calmly sitting down with her. "Your mistress helped you remove the sensitivity in your skin from the berries. Do you want to bring it back for a little while? I'm… Sorry that you had to go through that, it was my fault that you were stricken with confusion. Would you mind?"

"Not at all," Kairi said to her master, feeling that she had to allow him to do as he pleased, if only because of how her mistress expected her to behave. Sitting upright, she had a sigh escape her, finally feeling the pain from earlier subside from his treatments. She shut her eyes, taking in a deep breath, before saying, "Alright, I'm ready."

She had let go of her defenses. With this, Lucario pounced within reasonable measure. His paws gently brushed up against Kairi, knowing that her sensitivity had been diluted, but it was natural to react like that. When Kairi had began to laugh after he began to tickle her, he couldn't help but have a smile cross his face. He watched her squirm and let off laughs as he found himself trying to attack her from different angles. When she lifted her arm to try to cover her back, he attacked her from the side. Then her feet when she tried to go into a fetal position. When he saw that she had been almost crying from laughing so hard, he knew that he had been doing a great job.

When Kairi had begged him to stop, he did so, ruffling up her hair afterwards as he made a chuckle. He knew that they were on a tight schedule, and several minutes of that had been more than enough for him to make up for the state of confusion earlier. He helped her back up to her feet, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Kairi, are you ready to go?"

"Yeah, I'm ready," Kairi muttered to him, taking in a deep breath and calming herself after being tickled for several minutes straight. She had been mildly surprised that, even with her sensitivity diluted, she could still feel so incredibly ticklish. Had that always been the case? She couldn't remember any other time when she had been like that. She noticed the Lucario kneeling in front of her, his back facing her.

"Carrying you will make things faster for the both of us."

Careful to avoid his back spike, Kairi wrapped her arms around his shoulders, again amazed at how soft his fur had been. Even if he did look roughed up most of the time, it had always been surprisingly silk-like. "So soft…" She flushed red, realizing that she had said that out loud. She felt her legs being grabbed, hoisted up to his sides, as he started to walk.

Even though he didn't mention anything, he enjoyed Kairi's compliment about his fur. He never thought about it much, truthfully, as it was only the third time he heard anyone mention it to him. It wasn't apparent by how serious he always acted, but he did take some pride in keeping himself clean. Even a small patch of dirt on his coat could prove to be hazardous to his speed and health.

With quick speed, he leaped through the dense foliage with such precision. At one point, as he landed on a fallen log, he heard Kairi ask him something.

"Master, do you think that mistress will be upset with me?"

He continued to leap, the air rushing past them as he heard the question. "It should be no problem at all, Kairi," he said to her, his voice not affected by the wind. He dashed to the left, remembering the route to the cavern like it was the back of his paw. Part of him had been amazed that he could walk through the path that he took many years ago, and yet everything hadn't changed in the slightest. "I believe the Graceful One cares more about your safety than your other lessons."

At this, Kairi wondered about her mistress some more. The Milotic did protect Kairi from the Victreebell in those dwindling hours of the morning. Yet she had also threatened to eat Kairi if she didn't give up the Buneary. Did she really care about Kairi's protection, or was it more it was on her terms that Kairi would be hurt? It was hard to tell. Her head swiveled back, noticing a large figure that had been off to another direction. Was that…? Suddenly, she grew cold, realizing that if anyone knew that the Serperior had tried to eat her earlier-

Lucario felt Kairi's stress rise in her. He glanced over to see a peculiar Pokemon hidden nearby, their red-orange eyes glimmering from their hiding spot. The fighting-type was prepared to protect Kairi as much as he could, if only because his friend had requested him to do so, and yet he could feel Kairi's worry and fear as she looked at this creature. Why would Kairi behave this way, he wondered. However, there was no reason to pick a fight if it hadn't attacked first.

After they finally reached the cave, Lucario helped Kairi down from him and patted her on the back to push her towards the entrance of the cave. "Go on, the Graceful One is waiting for you." Normally, he would have followed the human girl into the cave with her. But without even a moment's hesitation, he leapt off in the direction they had just come from without saying a word. Though Kairi's powers were still weak, it had been just enough to get the faintest sense of urgency in Lucario's emotions.

Her entire body hadn't recovered from the realization of the Serperior being nearby. Did the Lucario sense it? Was he going to do something terrible to the snake Pokemon? She wondered what was going to happen, and whether or not it would be her fault for what comes next. A gulp escaped her, knowing that the Serperior had tried to kill her, but spared her life.

No. She had to stop. If she went into the cavern in this state of mind, it would only make the Milotic either upset that Kairi isn't calm or worried that her friend had done something to her. Kairi thought about the meditation. Yes, that's it. Shut her eyes, take deep breaths, calm herself. She took a minute to do as such, doing her best to push those thoughts aside.

Everything will be alright, she thought to herself. There was no reason for the Fierce One to hurt that Serperior. No one would be that foolish to admit that they tried to kill her. Plus he helped her take the berries back, making the task easier. Yes, it'll all work out in the end.

Her body was calmed. Taking in a deep breath, Kairi opened her eyes and entered the cavern. Her feet patted against the stone floor, feeling the cool air envelop her as she walked in. "Mistress?"


	9. Chapter VIII

Milotic was sleeping in the pool of water by the time Kairi made it down to the cave floor from her entrance. The faint sound of the human's voice, echoing along the walls, along with the feeling of her presence, was enough to gently awaken the serpent from her sleep. Her body stretched as much as it could, reflecting a myriad of prismatic colors, letting out a large yawn to take in the fresh air.

Her brown eyes adjusted themselves briefly before noticing how the light had been positioned. She knew what time it was, and thus how long she had been resting. When she saw Kairi walking up to her pool, she made no comment on how tardy Kairi had been or anything of the sort. Instead, she replied with a blunt, "Are you ready for your graceful lessons, Kairi?"

Taken aback by the blunt reaction of her mistress, Kairi had lost her composure. "Y-Yeah, I'm ready," she stammered, almost behaving far more surprised at the Milotic for her statement.

"Is there something bothering you, Kairi?" Milotic looked over Kairi again, trying to determine what it was that Kairi was feeling. A thought struck her, and her eyes peered over to the entrance of the cavern. The Fierce One was missing from Kairi's side.

It was easy to believe, for Milotic, that Kairi had done something to Lucario to anger or upset him. But that was folly; even she knew that Kairi had been far too submissive to even threaten him, let alone actually follow through with it. Before Kairi opened her mouth to answer with whatever she had planned to say, she motioned over to the pile of berries. "Bring a berry, and take one for yourself."

With a nod, Kairi silently went over to the berry pile that they had accumulated, plucking up two of them that she had gathered from earlier. She noticed the blue berry, which she had recognized as an Oran Berry, and the light-green one in her hand, which had been… something. Walking back towards her mistress, her mind racing with several thoughts at that moment, she called out, "Mistress?"

When she had gotten the Milotic's attention, she held up the light-green berry. "What was this berry again? I-I know we went over it, but I don't remember this one."

The Milotic could feel a sense of curiosity come over Kairi when she presented the berry to her. Leaning out of her pool, she looked over it, then glanced up at Kairi with a concerned expression. "I thought you knew this one, Kairi.

"This one cures status ailments. It's good for emergencies, but I also like the taste." Without asking Kairi, she scooped the berries up with her fins, balancing it as she quickly plucked it up. She rolled the berry into her mouth and chewed on it thoroughly. Her eyes, which would normally be closed when she eats her food, instead gazed at Kairi out of curiosity to see how she ate the berry.

Kairi took a bite of the berry, thinking to herself how good it tasted. She always enjoyed Oran berries. In a way, she envied her mistress, who could swallow the berry whole with the utmost ease. Instead, all she could do had been to stuff as much as she could into her mouth.

As soon as Kairi had been about to take another bite, the Milotic poked the girl's forehead with her fins. She appeared tranquil, at ease knowing that the next step would be at that moment. "Before you continue, take only what may fit, and chew thoroughly like I do." She nodded to her human servant, trying to indicate that she had been somewhat displeased with how Kairi made a messy bite into the berry.

Her attention caught, paying close attention to what the Milotic said to her, Kairi gave a small nod in response to what her mistress had said. She had to be careful when she took another bite of the berry, taking in a small amount and chewing it, making sure to not let anything dribble down her lips. She saw the tip of the Milotic's fin brush away whatever had been there from her last bite, a content look on her face as she observed Kairi carefully.

It surprised the Milotic to see her servant do it right the first time. Perhaps her attitude had changed, or maybe the instructions had begun to resonate with her; either way, the serpent was pleased. Her fin receded from her servant, sweeping up a red berry and placing it beside the crimson-haired human. "You're doing well, Kairi." She took her fins and lightly scratched Kairi back. "Continue eating gracefully, but do not let a single drop escape your mouth. It means you're taking too much, and it looks disgraceful."

As she scratched Kairi's back, the Milotic noticed that Kairi made a smile back towards her. The girl's eyes seemed to light up, the brightness it inherently had sparking up once more.

"Thank you, mistress. I don't really know what else to say."

A grin beamed across the Milotic's face. Erasing Kairi's mind had worked perfectly, as she believed that serving her had been the only thing that mattered in life. It was such a noticeable change from that mere few days ago that it pleased her immensely. She knew that it had been a cruel deed that she committed to, and yet she couldn't help but enjoy seeing Kairi so carefree and thankful for being here.

She watched Kairi take another bite, finishing up the berry, until there was a moment where Kairi ceased to move. For a second, the Milotic wondered if something had happened. Perhaps Kairi had an allergic reaction to the berry? It wasn't a moment later where Kairi, quickly covering her mouth with her hand, spat out something from it.

"A seed?" The Milotic leaned in a little bit to see the seed, which had been cleaned of the juices thanks to Kairi's neat eating, and an idea popped into her mind. "Ah yes, we should plant the seed sometime. It turns into a tree and produces berries if you give it enough time." Her fins took the seed and gently placed it to the side, seeing Kairi appear confused from the idea of it.

"How can it turn into a tree? It's so small."

A shadow of worry crossed the Graceful One, fearing that she had done more damage than she had anticipated when she took Kairi in as a servant. She moved forward and rubbed Kairi's back lightly, trying to dissuade either of them from feeling any sort of anxiety. "It has the _potential_ to grow into a tree, just like you have the potential to become almost as beautiful and graceful as me. I'll have to show you later. 

"Tomorrow you won't be sleeping on my scales. I'll need you to prepare something pleasing for your master to sleep on, otherwise you will sleep on the ground. Do you understand?"

"I understand, mistress." Kairi smiled and continued to eat the berry, trying to take in smaller bites so she wouldn't be overwhelmed. She wondered if she should get a different kind of bedding to sleep upon or go back to where she had gotten the leaves last time, when Aipom had helped her.

She took another bite, the confidence swelling up inside of her as the Milotic's fins rubbed the nape of her back. A content look had been glazed over Kairi's face, always careful on taking smaller bites into the berry so she wouldn't have to clean herself up. Kairi did her best to try not to think much about the Fierce One leaving her, to perhaps not consider the possibilities that had been flying through her head.

As Kairi ate, the Fierce One had returned, a sense of calmness over him as he approached the Graceful One. Nothing seemed to bother him, almost seemingly coming back from a walk. He made eye contact with the Milotic, standing before her as she comforted Kairi. "I'm sorry I'm late. There were some… issues I needed to take care of," he said to her, seeing her nod in response as she continued to stroke Kairi's back.

"It's no trouble, Fierce One. Please relax." Milotic said to her friend, giving him a reassured look as she seemed to be in good spirits. "It was a nice walk I assume? Did Kairi give you that much of a hard time during training?"

"Nothing like that. Just needed to clear my head a bit. Haven't been here in a while, so I was wondering how everything had been after all these years." He gave a glance at Kairi, remembering how she felt when they both caught a glance of that Pokemon earlier. "She did nothing to stress me out, I assure you."

"I see." Milotic returned to observing Kairi as she finished the berry, noticing how she had managed to keep herself clean the entire time. It was now that she felt content with how Kairi had been performing today, especially if the Fierce One seemed fine with her. "Stand for me, and face me."

Hearing her mistress say this to her, Kairi rose to her feet, pushing herself up with her hands as she wondered what it was she was to do now. "Is this going to be the same one from yesterday?"

Milotic shook her head, and instead already pointed at Kairi. "The way you rose just now proved to be inadequate in what I need you to do." She kept her fins at bay, drawing herself back as she spoke to her servant more. "You will need to learn grace in movement. Appearances and movement must be combined to show grace. To leave a lasting impression in front of those who wish to recognize your grace.

"First, stand up straight, arms at your side, legs together, and look directly at whoever needs your attention." She watched as Kairi straightened herself up, making sure that she had faced the water-type. Her legs were together, arms at her side, and she had been looking over towards the Milotic. With a hum to herself, she used her fins to poke Kairi in several places to make certain that she wouldn't falter. When she was satisfied, she continued her instructions. "Bend forward at the waist. Bow to me and say, 'As you wish, Mistress,' then stand straight again."

Kairi did so, her body leaning from the waist into a bow towards the Milotic. "As you wish, Mistress," she responded, her voice calmed, a difference from the previous days. For a moment, she winced as she did so, and placed her arms by her side.

How pleasing it was to have Kairi doing this properly the first time! The Milotic barely made a smile as she saw this, finding it impressive, in a way, to have Kairi presenting her like this. They were as graceful as she wanted them to be, fitting of the grace she had herself. "Very good, Kairi. I expect you to show this respect when I command you to do anything. If you understand, get on your knees and sit."

Once Kairi got into the position, Milotic thought to herself if hurting Kairi like before had made her obedient. She could still see the bruises on Kairi's wrist from tightly squeezing her there. However, she wanted to get this lesson imbedded into her servant's mind. "Stretch your arms along the ground in front of you, until you can not stretch them any more. Lower your head and repeat this: 'Good morning, my Mistress. How may I be your loyal servant today?' Now, repeat."

Wanting to please her mistress in any way, Kairi felt joyous when the serpent's praise fell upon her ears. These exercises didn't seem too difficult, not like balancing a berry like before. Seating herself upon her knees, she listened patiently to her mistress. _Stretch your arms out and repeat._ Easy enough, right? Leaning forward, stretching her arms out before her, feeling them do so with ease, Kairi trembled for a moment before replying back, "Good morning, my Mistress! How may I be your loyal servant today?"

Mollified from her position, Milotic noticed how Kairi had trembled a bit during this. She had been planning on a few strokes along Kairi's back if she had done it right, but felt that she needed to do it again. "That was a good start, but you were a little shaky that time. I cannot have that happen. Stand up completely and do it again."

When Kairi stood up, her mistress stopped her again.

"The way you stood up just now… It wasn't as graceful as it could have been. Stand up when I say you may, and do it more elegantly."

Her mood had been ruined. Kairi could feel herself starting to consider objecting back, but held her tongue for the time being. "I can't help it. I-"

"You can help it, and you will always help yourself to be more graceful. Now bow to me again, and remember what you must do when you are told what to do." Having had to interject, Milotic wasn't in a particular rush to teach Kairi proper ways of serving her, but she was ready to carry out punishments in case her loyal servant failed to do as she asked.

For a moment, Kairi looked at her mistress with a sort of glare, the likes of which that she would have been slapped for, and yet she made a sigh. "Alright," she said quietly, trying to keep herself calm when she saw how the Milotic had a stern glare over to her direction.

Again she lowered herself onto her knees, and again she bowed to the Milotic. "Good morning, my Mistress. How may I be your loyal servant today?"

Milotic didn't enjoy having to correct Kairi as much, and she knew that the girl felt the same. She had been doing so well before, so why the sudden change? The Milotic wanted Kairi to be near perfect, and if that meant inflicting a little pain once in a while to keep the human motivated, then so be it. She felt certain that it was the same for humans and their Pokemon as well.

"You had nice form, Kairi, but you didn't say what you were told to." The Milotic considered striking Kairi to get the message across, but kept herself from acting too rashly. Instead, she whipped at the ground beside Kairi with a strong force, a sound slap echoing across the cavern walls. "Start over again, and make sure you start it correctly this time. Whenever your mistress tells you to do something, you bow and say: 'As you wish, Mistress.'"

The defiance that Kairi felt had slipped away the moment that she had heard the slap. Her eyes flitted over to the fins, watching them recede back to her mistress, and she felt the obedience coming back to her. She had been about to protest beforehand, but it made sense when the Milotic made it clear what she wanted of Kairi.

Getting back onto her feet, this time being careful and deliberate with how she rose, she looked back at her mistress as a small smile formed on her face. It had been a mask of sorts, trying to appear pleased for her mistress. "As you wish, Mistress," she stated, bowing before her as she had been instructed to do so.

Again, Kairi got on her knees before leaning forward, arms outstretched, head in between her arms. "Good morning, my Mistress. How may I serve you today?" she repeated, feeling that had been her best try, but waited for the inevitable correction.

Staring at Kairi, the Milotic saw how loyal Kairi had been willing to be. What had pleased her the most had been the moment of defiance slipped away, replaced with a tranquility and acceptance of the role. Now, Kairi appeared willing and happy to serve her mistress, and with the grace the Milotic had taught her.

Moving towards her, she rubbed her fins against Kairi's back, satisfied with the result. "You may stand, Kairi." Seeing her servant rise up onto her feet, she shifted her tail to be over Kairi's head, rubbing her hair gently. "You did well. Discipline is another key to grace."

For a moment, Kairi could have felt herself become awash into a state of panic. Had her mistress been aware of the defiance in her? It had been hard to tell. Perhaps it was just a fluke, a mistake on her part. Then the Milotic gave Kairi a lick on the cheek to signal her pleasure. When the Milotic licked Kairi's tummy, she jumped back in surprise, trying not to let out a laugh because she had been ticklish there.

"T-Thank you, Mistress!"

A minute passed with the Milotic licking Kairi before receding back, regaining a more prominent posture towards her. She had been pleased with her servant so far, but felt it necessary to restate the purpose of her being there. "As my servant, I expect you to stand properly, sit properly, walk properly, eat properly, and speak in a manner of grace as I do. Grace is a discipline, and you will master that discipline if you wish to stay as my servant."

With the girl's memory erased, Milotic therefore felt that Kairi would find nowhere else to go. Like a Pokemon trapped in its Pokeball, Kairi would think of no other home than the one Milotic provided her. With this encouragement of acting proper and graceful, and judging from how Kairi had been behaving the past three days, she felt enticed to see how Kairi would develop in her presence. At least, that was what she wanted to believe.

Rising up and puffing out her chest, she spoke to Kairi directly in a different tone. "I also expect you to never use your lips to speak again after the next full moon." Using her fin to direct Kairi, she stated, "Now stand straight for me."

Dumbfounded by what she had been hearing, with the first half of it making sense and the rest of it sounding absurd, Kairi wondered what she had meant. Speaking with no lips? That notion was absurd! She wanted to improve for her mistress, especially if it meant she wouldn't have to hurt her, but that seemed like an impossible task.

"Mistress, how can I speak then?" Her voice rang out with concern and anxiety, feeling it well back into her heart. She stepped forward, nearly stumbling as her foot caught a stump but regaining her composure. Feeling embarrassed from this, she tried to recompose herself once more. "If I can't use my lips, then how would I speak? You ask me to do all this with the commands, but you don't want me to talk?" Feeling that she crossed a line she shouldn't have crossed, Kairi rolled back. "I mean, you're my mistress and I'm sure you have good reason, I just don't know how I can do that."

For a split second, the Milotic felt that Kairi's outburst had been the defiance she snuffed out, but was glad that Kairi still remained loyal. The distrust she had towards trainers, and by extension humans, had been so great that it was hard to tell when she wasn't being defiant or not. Perhaps she needed to start trusting Kairi just as much, if not more, than how she trusted her.

"The Fierce One will teach you more about your aura in due time. Only then will you be able to speak through that alone." Her fins rose up. "Now, sit properly, then stand again. Do this until I tell you to stop. I want to see grace in your movements as befitting as a servant of mine."

Fatigue washed over Kairi like a wave. _More?_ She had been thoroughly started to become more tired from this. Perhaps it had been the anxiety from earlier, or perhaps it was something else entirely, but as she went through the motions all she could think of was how she wanted to sleep. Today had been a long day, surely doing it right the first time would suffice. Maybe-

"Focus, Kairi. I sense uneasiness."

"Sorry, sorry."

After that interjection, the Milotic remained quiet as she watched her servant go through the motions. Only if she had noticed something unsightly in Kairi's movements would she speak. After all, _she_ was the strict judge on beauty. The Milotic was mollified, knowing that she was the only standard of beauty there was to the girl.

On Kairi's bed of leaves, Lucario opened one of his eyes to watch the human perform for the serpent. It had been a peculiar sight, watching the Milotic treat her like a trained pet. There would be no way that he would bring that up to the Graceful One's face, that would be tantamount to suicide. Yet he did appreciate Milotic's need to train the human in grace. It appeared to be a selfless act to him; there had been no need for the Milotic to teach Kairi this. For all intents and purposes, she could just have easily had made Kairi just a mindless drone for her beck and call.

He was sure that his friend would say otherwise. Lucario made a smile to himself. Training was always a sign of strength to the canine, and wondered what Kairi would become _if_ she was fully trained. He wondered what Milotic would do with the human after being fully trained with aura and grace. That alone made him intrigued to see her progress.

Milotic noticed how Kairi had faltered for one second, and she raised her tail to gesture to her to keep going. Minor errors had no need to be punished. Practice meant perfection, even if she did it right. The more she would do this, the more natural and fluid the servant's movements would be. "Continue, my servant."

For several more minutes, everything had been proceeding just as the Milotic intended. Kairi's motions were just as she expected. When her servant glanced over at the Lucario, perhaps becoming curious towards him, her fins slapped the floor. Echoing along the cavern, she spoke to Kairi in a soft voice.

"Focus, Kairi."

It had been a contrast to the angry snapping of her tail. She saw Kairi jump a bit at the sound of it, her eyes widening out of surprise.

"I'm sorry, mistress!" Kairi exclaimed, bowing to the Milotic. Her thoughts had been broken, torn down from the sudden realization that the Milotic had always been watching her.

Another crack of Milotic's tail hit the floor, this time hitting the top of Kairi's right foot to cause only minor pain. She wanted Kairi to continue with her training, not apologize for her mistakes. "Continue, Kairi." Her patience had been starting to run thin with Kairi, which had been a shame. She was doing so well.

The pain had been sharp, and Kairi watched her mistress speak to her to continue on. She knew that she would probably face punishment, and yet something drew Kairi to raise her foot to rub her hands upon it. Kairi could feel a small bruise coming along from the tip of the fin, and she apologized again. "I'm sorry!"

What had been going on with her? The water serpent tried to be patient, even keeping a calm face as she slapped Kairi's other foot. This time she had been certain to make a bruise, forcing Kairi to put her other foot down. Though she felt guilty that she had to punish Kairi over a trivial thing like this, it would help make her servant more obedient, and not as easy to distract.

"I said _continue_ , Kairi. Do you not want to continue your training?"

"I want to continue!"

Kairi could feel her heart drop, looking straight at her mistress with a panicked expression. Her eyes were wide, and she gulped, feeling herself tremble. All she wanted was acceptance from her mistress. If it hadn't been for the Milotic, she would have died. Wandering the land alone with no memory of being anywhere else. Pokemon would try to kill her. Nothing to soothe her or ground her to reality.

Having her mistress give up on her was equivalent to a death sentence. Even as she shifted her feet, feeling the fresh bruises upon them, she knew that she couldn't give up. Despite the mixed feelings she had in the previous several minutes, Kairi could feel a different sort of emotion swell up within her.

Dropping into a bow upon her knees, Kairi lowered her head as it lightly touched the floor. "I'm sorry, my mistress. I want to continue the training."

"Then continue, Kairi. Do not let pain or emotions distract you." Her fins were raised, tilting Kairi's chin up to her from her bow. "Continue standing and sitting properly until I tell you to stop."

When Kairi sat there, returning to a normal posture, she had to compose herself. Taking in a deep breath, easing the nerves that had been running through her, she stood up once more. Her eyes met with the Milotic's, trying to see if she had her approval.

"Did I tell you to stop? Continue, and do it slowly, not so fast. There is no grace in rushing." All the while, she began to gather water into her mouth, ready to spray Kairi if it was necessary.

It didn't appear to be necessary though. After the bump in progress, Kairi had become complacent, no doubt encouraged from having to avoid being punished. Swallowing down the water, Milotic was able to become calm and passive as before. Her eyes observed Kairi standing up and sitting down slowly, and properly. Just as she wanted the girl to do. Admittedly, she had grown fascinated with how Kairi moved. It had been curious to see a human up close as she had these past few days.

Meanwhile, the Fierce One had been silent as he watched the exchange between the Milotic and Kairi. He did not quite enjoy seeing Kairi injured, even if it had been mere bruises. It had been a strange thought that he figured would never cross his mind. With the shared past with the Graceful One, seeing a human like that wouldn't bother him, and yet this was the first time he hated seeing one harmed. He couldn't help but reflect on what that meant.

Despite this, he felt that this kind of training was necessary for Kairi. It would make her more disciplined, which in turn would help her learn more about self-defense. His eyes gazed upon her form for a minute, also considering how graceful Kairi could become eventually.

He tore his eyes away from her, shutting them and returning to a meditative posture. Lucario still had to consider what to teach her tomorrow morning, after all.

For ten minutes, the Milotic watched Kairi proceed to do what she had been told. The sunlight that streamed through the ceiling had began to fade away, thus it had been time to end the training before it got too dark to see. "You may stop, Kairi."

Her breath had been growing noticeable. Kairi could feel herself almost burning up. Even after the past two days of being taken in, she still felt weak. If there had been one thing she wondered, it was when she had been going to feel like a natural at this. When she had been told to stop, her body almost collapsed into a heap before she stopped herself.

Hands on her knees, Kairi caught her breath. "T-Thanks." She looked up at her mistress, and gave a weak smile. Despite the abuse she went through, her optimism still shone through. Even if this had been hard work, Kairi had plenty of time to think during that practice. Lowering her head once more, she apologized. "I'm sorry if I seemed distracted earlier. My mind was somewhere else for a bit."

"It is fine." Milotic pointed to Kairi's feet. "However, if I may state my mind, you need to focus more on your tasks at hand. Do I need to worry about your safety when you go outside? Or can you focus when you're out there and fend off whatever may hunt you?

"These lessons are both for making you graceful and beautiful, but also to help you concentrate on what is in front of you. If your mind is elsewhere when you are being hunted, that may lead to your death. Do you understand?"

This surprised Lucario, who had listened to this. She had twisted the meaning of the lessons to include him, in a way. Already she had been picking up on cues to make Kairi more prepared to be able to protect herself. After what he saw the day before, it didn't surprise him. The image of the angry Swellow pecking at her had still been in his mind; he didn't realize the significance of his intervention until he arrived. It pleased him to know that Kairi could be safe here.

Kairi bowed to Milotic, feeling herself more at ease. "I understand. You're only doing this to help me."

"Exactly." Her mistress receded back into her pool of water, the large eyes of hers locking onto Kairi's. "It is time for you to sleep, Kairi." As her servant walked up to the pool, she took the time to admire how Kairi had already been changing the way she walked. It wasn't as noticeable as she would have liked, but it was a start. "Remember, this is your last night on my scales. Enjoy the honor while you can."

Seeing sweat on Kairi from the activity, Milotic could have cringed at the thought of her resting on her scales. Warning her servant beforehand, she felt water burst out of her mouth, directing it onto the girl's body to wash her off. Sadly, with her being a water-type, there would be no way to dry Kairi off without hurting her.

"Now you may rest on my scales."

Kairi would have thanked her mistress, but kept herself quiet as she shivered from the water. Surely the Milotic already knew that she had appreciated everything that she had done. It hadn't been several minutes after she laid on her mistress's scales that Kairi drifted off to sleep.

Laying on her stomach, Kairi's arms were placed to cushion her head, her legs hanging limply as her toes dipped into the cool water. Once several minutes had passed, Milotic, unmoving, spoke to the Fierce One.

"Friend, may I request something from you?"

Lucario opened his eyes, hearing the Graceful One speak to him. "Of course. What is it? Training for Kairi? Anyone you want me to take care of?" He kept his voice steady, wondering what it could be that his friend desired from him. Ears raised, he appeared surprised when she requested what she wanted.

"I thought you had taken care of that." He simply responded, sounding worried when she had told him the task.

Shaking her head, Milotic frowned at this notion. She knew that it had been an oversight, but with Kairi around, and having passed through the entrance multiple times, the chance had been too great. "My servant tied me up for the past few days. I kept a watchful eye over her, but eventually she's going to have to do things on her own. You don't wish for her memories and instincts to return, do you?"

"Of course not." Lucario shut his eyes, and kept himself in the meditative posture that he sought. "If you wish, I can take care of it for you when the moon is high. I just want to make sure Kairi is in deep sleep."

"You realize I can do _that_ to her, right? She wouldn't remember a single thing."

"I would rather have it so she doesn't know rather than being forced to not remember."

Kairi couldn't sleep properly that night. Even on her mistress's scales, she found herself haunted by something. An itch she couldn't sate. A feeling of dread and distress within her. Within two hours she had been awake, motionless on the Milotic, eyes half-open. Why couldn't she sleep? Had the training been affecting her in a way she didn't want? No, she _wanted_ this training.

Yet tonight she saw his face. The boy in her dream, with his white hair and ruby-red eyes. He gave her something, said that she would need it. Kairi shut her eyes, but could only see the vague image of him. Who was he? It frightened her, considering she had never seen him before. She shook her head, thinking to herself maybe that forcing herself to sleep would help rid her of the image.

Nothing happened, and Kairi ended up slipping off of the Graceful One's scales. Her feet landed with a pat on the floor, her eyes adjusting to the inky blackness of the cavern. Moonlight shone through the cracks in the ceiling, giving her enough ample light to see where she had been going to. Feeling her feet sting from the bruises, she walked towards a wall and hugged it, placing a hand upon it and grabbing her way forward.

 _Maybe I just need some fresh air._

Kairi took several careful minutes of following the wall, knowing that there had only been one entrance and exit to the cave, leading to the stream that bypassed this part of the cave. She could hear the running water as it rushed past, the stream small but exiting into the underground lake. Once she had made her way to the entrance, she heard something unfamiliar.

Instinctively, Kairi hid, unsure of whether it was a Pokemon hunting or something else. Her eyes scanned the entrance, and she saw a shadow hunched over a spot. It froze when she had been there, and Kairi gulped, unsure of whether to make her presence officially known or keep hiding in the hopes that it would go away.

"Kairi?"

The figure stood up, and she could make out the shape of the Fierce One. Letting off a sigh of relief, she stepped forward, giving him a small bow. "I-It's you."

Lucario moved away from the spot, approaching Kairi as he placed a paw on her shoulder. He saw her rise up, looking at him with curiosity. He could feel himself grow cold out of anxiety. "Kairi, what are you doing up so late?"

"I couldn't sleep. I had a bad dream." Kairi didn't quite know how to answer, so she had left it at that. She made sure she stood upright, trying to make herself look proper at all times. "Is it bad that I'm up? Nothing's going to hunt me at this time of night, will they?"

"No no, as long as you stay close, no one will dare to hurt you." Lucario blinked, wondering what he should do. It was just as she said, Kairi tied her up all the time. It seemed that Kairi had an uncanny knack for keeping everyone occupied. "Anyways, you should head back to sleep."

"But I can't." Kairi had a distinctive frown on her face, appearing disgruntled that he seemed to dismiss her. She saw how Lucario looked baffled, rubbing his head lightly as he tried to think of something. "Why are you trying to encourage me to go to sleep anyway? What were you doing with-"

"Kairi, what _are_ you doing up?"

Everyone went silent as the Milotic, as silent as she ever could be, had seemingly appeared from the blackness of the cavern. Her presence had caused Kairi to ease up, her tensions washing away. Turning to face her mistress, Kairi explained to her that she couldn't sleep because of a bad dream.

"Then why didn't you just tell me? I could help you sleep better." Milotic's tone had taken on one of disappointment. "Do you not trust me?"

"I-I do trust you, mistress. I'm sorry, I was just restless and needed to get outside. The cave was too stuffy tonight." Kairi bowed to her, apologizing for this. Her body had been awash in embarrassment from this development, and when she rose a small blush had been on her face. "Once I get out and clear my head, I'll come right back."

When Kairi had said this, both of them had a moment of cunning. Milotic shut her eyes, and took in a deep breath. "If that's what you want, allow the Fierce One to accompany you. There's no telling what manner of creature will try to harm you if you go alone." With a nod towards Lucario, she moved around them, blocking the stream with her body. "Just be back soon, alright?"

"Yes, mistress." Kairi's face didn't quite have an expression, but one could see her lips barely forming a smile. She looked over to Lucario, muttering to him, "I suppose we can talk about more training?"

Lucario, who had been busy talking to Milotic, had been interrupted by Kairi. Taken by surprise, he nodded. "Yeah, training. We can discuss what routines I have planned for you." Lucario looked back at Milotic, then turned his back on her and walked out of the cavern with Kairi. His arm had been over her shoulder, keeping her close, but also to prevent her from looking back.

So much information came from him as she spoke. Some of it had been garbled as she spoke to the both of them, but one thing had been clear.

Kairi had no sort of identification or devices on her.

How peculiar. Surely a trainer would have had an ID on them. Milotic saw them leave the cave, and she immediately turned to the trainer's clothes. Picking them up one by one with her psychic abilities, she turned them inside out, emptied the pockets, just to establish for herself that the claim was true.

Then she saw them. The two capsules that she had. The terror struck her as she thought of how lucky they were so far with Kairi not being curious enough. Just as Kairi had tied her up with the task, Milotic had kept Kairi busy enough from imagining to look at these again. She had gotten close. Close to releasing her Pokemon. Would instinct flood to her again as she wielded the Pokemon with destructive force? Would the Pokemon compromise Kairi and jog her memory?

Taking the belt onto her tail, Milotic had been certain to ensure that this would never happen. Kairi was _hers_. _Her_ servant. _Her_ human. Her mind was set on making sure Kairi would be protected from the dangers of trainers. Seeing the capsules on her fin, there had been a fleeting temptation to crush them where they stood. The Pokemon couldn't do anything if they were gone.

Her entire body trembled, curling her body around the capsules as the thought went from a whisper into a bellowing scream. _Do it_. Kairi could never know about her past. Her eyes seared with intensity, feeling the temptation claw at her heart. All logic told her to do it.

Yet she let the belt go, picking it up with her psychic abilities. _I can't kill a Pokemon_. Hunting had been one thing, but striking down a defenseless Pokemon had never been honorable. She had to hide this somewhere where no one would ever dare to look. That was the only way. The Pokemon can live in the capsules, unaware of what truly happened, and Kairi would be safe.

It was simple.

Exiting the cavern, Milotic disappeared into the night with the belt. She wouldn't return until midnight, after Kairi and Lucario had already come back, explaining that she had to have some fresh air as well.

The deed was done.

Kairi slept far more peacefully that night than ever before. Returning onto her mistress's scales, Milotic pondered to herself once again.

The human girl loved her. Despite all the attempts to mold her into a servant, Kairi felt sincere whenever she spoke to Milotic. Even after the bruises, which Milotic felt genuinely guilty over, Kairi apologized to her before she went to sleep for the second time. The bond between herself and Kairi had been growing. Kairi had still been a servant, but she did as she was asked to do and had been eager to train. It almost felt like she had become more of a student than a servant.

But she had to keep that distance. Milotic wondered if it could be possible? On a long enough timeline, the possibility slowly becomes impossible to avoid.

All three of them slept well that night.


End file.
